


The Boy in the Ice

by eloquentelegance



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Gen, KHR-Centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:35:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 27,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24756379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eloquentelegance/pseuds/eloquentelegance
Summary: A mysterious pillar of ice drops out of the sky and fuses with the grounds of Yuuei. It's not the strangest thing to happen, especially for this school. But the boy, frozen within, is strange - yes, very strange indeed.(Added scene 6/18/2020, sneak preview of future content in the comments)
Relationships: Sawada Tsunayoshi & Vongola Tenth Generation Guardians
Comments: 140
Kudos: 688
Collections: Ashes' Library, Time Travel and World Travel





	The Boy in the Ice

Yuuei is known for many things. Excellent faculty. Promising students. Intense heroic and non-heroic programs. And now… 

Nedzu eyes the ice block, stuck fast to the courtyard.

… this too. 

It fell from above, seeming to form right from the very fabric of the sky. No one could guess its origins. Extraterrestrial is the popular theory. Interdimensional is also considered. But wherever it came from, the residents of Yuuei treated it with the utmost priority. They had to, considering all the attention on them.

A media storm descended on the school. It appeared to be yet another security breach. Considering its mysterious nature, a lot decried it to be more dangerous than the last. Yuuei was fast gaining an unsavory reputation. So Nedzu focused all his efforts on addressing it. 

The ice block is about twice the size of All Might in his active form. Now normally, ice wouldn't pose any concern - especially given that Todoroki Shouto continues to be one of their best and brightest. Speaking of, his peers seem to think the block of ice is something of his responsibility...

"Oh dang, Zuko! Look! It's the Avatar!"

... but not for the usual reasons. From what Nedzu gathered, the situation resembles something from a children's show. What kind of children's show would feature a young boy encased in an iceberg - well, even with his great intellect, some things remain incomprehensible. 

"I still haven't watched that, you know." Shouto stares at the ice block before him.

Ashido gasps. "Whaaaaaaat?"

The boy was the cause of their primary concern. It couldn't be healthy - stuck frozen like that. So they've tried all manner of measures to melt the thing. Bakugou went at it. Todoroki tried his flames. Ashido even tried using her acid. They summoned every student with a heat quirk, then every hero. (The less said about Endeavour's attempt, the better.) But the ice stayed stubbornly solid.

Nedzu was admittedly impressed. He peers into the block, wiping at the surface to get a clearer view. The boy sits curled into a ball, hands fisted and held close to the chest. He looks scared, the poor thing. But most curiously, if Nedzu's eyes are to be trusted, there appears to be a single ember of a flame lit on the boy's brow. Yes, yes. A flame encased in ice. How perfectly curious. 

Nedzu nodded to himself. If the ice was this boy's doing, he could be of some interest to Yuuei.

* * *

"He could be a prince!" Aoyama says, circling the ice. "From outer space!"

Ever since the faculty deemed it safe, students have swarmed the mysterious object of unknown origin. They weren't given free leave to try their quirks on it. But that didn't stop the more creative students from trying a myriad of tools and tricks with the ice. Hatsume's experiments, especially, had been very memorable. The other students didn't care so much about freeing the boy stuck within, and spent their time speculating about him. 

"Space royalty? Really?" Sero hums, scratching his cheek. "I don't know…"

" _Oui_! Where is your sense of romance?" 

"A harbinger of darkness," Tokoyami murmurs.

"Oh but he looks so…" Uraraka bites her lip. "He doesn't look like a threat."

"He could fight a paper bag and lose. That's what he looks like," Bakugou scoffs. 

Midoriya gnaws at his nails. "But what if he made the ice? And not to mention, he's got that flame on his head. How is that even possible? The laws of physics shouldn't allow for it. Unless, that's not real fire - something that only seems like fire. Or maybe that's all part of his quirk! But what kind of -"

"Thank you for that enlightening analysis," Iida cuts in, pushing up his glasses. "But perhaps we could step away from the ice."

"Aww come on, Class Prez," Ashido laughs, kicking the block. "The teachers say it's fine."

Shouto tunes out the rest of his class. He's not particularly interested in the ice or the boy inside, regardless of whatever Avatar references his classmates keep making. But his eyes keep getting drawn back to the block. He could be thinking about dinner or upcoming tests, then blink and realize he's been staring at the ice. 

So he might be just a touch interested. There's something about how the boy tucked himself small - knees pressed against his chest, hands clasped as if in prayer. If he was some kind of art connoisseur, he could've described the ice and its boy in a more profound manner, explained more the emotions evoked by the sight. But he's only a sixteen-year-old kid with a focus on heroics. And the most he could say is that…

It's sad. The boy, the ice - it all feels so lonely, and familiar somehow. He recognizes it - the curve of this boy's shoulders and the angle of his bowed head. It makes the air stick to Shouto's throat, tremors dancing along the backs of his hands. He doesn't like it, not at all. 

His classmates have started setting up camp, an actual camp, around the ice block. Shouto might have missed a memo somewhere. He has no idea what that's all about. The others wave him over, ready to include him with whatever they're up to. He appreciates the gesture but respectfully declines. As someone with half their body dedicated to ice, he's familiar enough with the cold and he isn't usually bothered by it. But this ice feels different. The chill pierces deep, going past his bones into some unnamed, unlit layer within. Excuse him for not being keen to spend more time close to it than he absolutely has to.

Catching Bakugou's eye, he minutely nods. The other boy turns away with a huff. But Shouto can read the subtext of those crossed arms, that pinched brow. Bakugou must have sensed it too.

The ice block is a mystery. That's a given. But there's more - so much more to it than a simple mystery. And when they finally find out, Shouto fears no one will be ready.

* * *

"A world full of UMAs! That cop had green-scaled skin! Fluorescent green!" Gokudera flails his arms.

Takeshi laughs. "So what? You think she glows in the dark?"

"Yes! Wait, no. Maybe. If I got a sample…"

"... Shouldn't we be looking for Boss?" Chrome whispers, barely audible as usual.

Somehow, Gokudera flails even more. "Ah! That's right! Tenth! We have to focus!"

"You're the only one distracted, Octopus-head." Senpai very helpfully points out.

"Don't you start!" Gokudera runs a hand through his hair, tugging harshly. He'll go bald if he keeps that up. Takeshi's about to say so but Gokudera starts yelling again. "How are we supposed to find him? There is literally a whole new dimension out there! Where do we start?"

"How about the news?" Yuni chimes in, all sweet and soft. 

She's all sweetness and softness, that girl. It makes her a good teammate, Takeshi supposes. And before Tsuna, he wouldn't care much more beyond that. He's more careful now - haha, care- _full,_ full of care. Or he tries to be, especially during a game. Some teammates can be too good, always so nice and so happy to help with everything, until there's nothing else for anybody to do. That's not teamwork. That's a solo act, using everyone as props. Those are exhausting. And Takeshi would know, more than most.

Yuni presents a newspaper to them. The front page shows Tsuna, frozen in ice. He's in the courtyard of a high school - Yuuei High, specifically. There's a sign and everything. Look at that! How convenient.

"Teeeeeeeenth!" Gokudera wails, snatching the paper from Yuni. 

"If someone doesn't silence him, you will all face the consequences."

And there goes Hibari-senpai, so scary as always.

"Maa, maa, Gokudera. Isn't that great? Now we just gotta pick him up."

"I wanna see! I wanna see!" Lambo tugs hard at Gokudera's arms. He sneers at the kid before bending down, showing the newspaper. "Why is dame-Tsuna frozen?"

"Hm! That is a good question!" Byakuran chirps, peering over Takeshi's shoulder. 

Blinking once, Takeshi keeps his grin firmly place before stepping aside and away from their enemy-turned-ally. Sure, he owes the guy his life. And he's not a grudge keeper. But he still very much enjoys his personal space. And Byakuran refuses to get the hint or the blatant requests or the strained warnings. Takeshi may have forgiven the whole megalomania phase with his dad dead in an alternate future, but he definitely hasn't forgotten. All he wants is a few thousand feet between him and Byakuran. That's not too much to ask for, right?

"We can ask him," Yuni suggests. 

"Oh Tsuna-kun, why were you frozen? Oh Tsuna-kun, how did you end up here? Oh Tsuna-kun, what happened?" Byakuran singsongs.

"Yes, exactly like that." Yuni giggles.

Now Takeshi isn't the most politically minded guy. He leaves that to geniuses like Gokudera. But whenever Yuni's not looking, Byakuran stares at her with slitted eyes. His smile seems as real as the shrimp from convenience store sushi. There's something up between them. Takeshi just hopes to stay outta the way when it all blows up.

* * *

Seven teenagers and a child show up on the academy's doorstep. Apart from obviously skipping class (it's mid-morning! on a weekday!), they don't seem particularly abnormal. The white-haired one (not to be confused with the silver-haired ones) very cheerfully requested an audience with him. They refused to leave and the situation threatened to escalate. Nedzu preferred not to involve the police, and start yet another media storm. Their reputation can't take anymore damage. 

So he meets them. He doesn't let them in - that would be foolish. No, he heads to the gate and meets them there. A tingling in his fur assured him that it was the right choice. Worst case scenario, trouble occurs. But in an academy filled with decorated heroes and heroes-in-training, he feels safe in taking his chances. 

"Welcome to Yuuei High!" He tells them. "I'm Nedzu! The one who could be a mouse or a dog or a bear, though the only important thing is, I'm the principal! I hear that you were looking for me."

" _Dio mio, é un UMA."_ One of them whispers, the shocked tone conveying enough even without him understanding the language.

"I'm Byakuran," the white-haired one replies. "The one who could be an angel or a devil but more importantly, I'm on a mission!"

This one is definitely mocking him. Nedzu's grin gets a little strained. He's about to respond with a scorching rebuttal, but this Byakuran cuts him off.

"We are looking for Tsunayoshi!" 

Nedzu pauses. Blinking, he shares a look with Recovery Girl and All Might. Chiyo insisted on coming and Yagi had nothing better to do. 

"Pardon?" Yagi blinks.

"Tsunayoshi!" Byakuran repeats. "Fuwa-fuwa hair with doki-doki eyes?"

"Idiot!" A silver-haired one barks out. "What kinda description is that?"

"Yeah, his eyes aren't doki-doki. It's more of a shing-shing." A black-haired boy adds with a laugh.

"Eh. Isn't it more of a fweeeen?" Yet another silver-(but more grey)-haired one pipes up.

"Shut! Up!"

"He's still in the ice, isn't he?" A dark green-haired girl asks, her orange eyes sharp and sad.

"The boy in the ice. Yes. His name is Tsunayoshi?"

"Please. You must let us see him. If we don't act fast, he will die."

Nedzu doesn't miss the way the other teenagers, even the youngest child, goes still and silent. All their eyes are pinned on the girl. Either she is lying and she shocked them. Or she was withholding key information and revealed it just now. Neither bodes well for all future interactions.

The youngest child breaks the sudden hush. "I wanna see Tsuna!"

The silver-grey haired one picks him up. "Hey, hey, be good Lambo. Extremely behave and we'll get you some yummy candy."

"No! I want Tsuna! Now!" Lambo, the child, struggles to free himself. His cheeks flush a blotchy red, a telltale sign of an oncoming tantrum.

Nedzu returns his attention to the dark-green haired girl. "And may I have the pleasure of knowing your name?"

She smiles at him the way he sees politicians smile on TV - flashy and rehearsed. "You may. My name is Yuni."

He waits for her to offer a last name. She does not. He clears his throat. 

"Well… Miss Yuni, is it? That is a hefty statement to make."

"I am aware. Can you really risk mistrusting me?"

Nedzu narrows his eyes. She has him cornered. Tsunayoshi's life now depends on him and his choices. If he chooses wrong, he will have blood on his hands. How terrifyingly clever. 

"Perhaps we should have requested for police reinforcement..." Chiyo mutters under her breath. "We could really use Tsukauchi-san."

"Nedzu-san," Yuni lifts her chin, looking him in the eyes. "You have no reason to trust us. I know this. And you have students - children - under your protection. Lives you cannot risk. But you have someone very dear to us and please. We just don't want to lose him."

"Not again," the silver-haired one says in a hushed voice, a complete contrast to the biting, snarling tone from earlier. 

Nedzu flicks his tail back and forth. He meets Yuni's gaze - her orange eyes brighter than ever before. Silence stretches out between them. Then he nods with a resigned sigh. 

"Come this way."

He and his colleagues lead the group further in. They're clearly in no mood to suffer any more of his probing questions. So he attempts his best tour guide impression, hoping to lighten them up. But the young ones ignore him, except for a needle-eyed, black-haired boy. That one was very keen to learn about the rules and regulations of the school, specifically if there was some kind of "disciplinary committee". When Nedzu answered no, he got the distinct impression of having fallen far in the boy's esteem. 

Finally, they arrive at the courtyard. The ice block remains in the deadcenter. No one could move the troublesome thing. The ice had somehow fused with the ground. Moving it would take nothing short of excavating the whole courtyard. And that would ruin all the lovely landscaping, not to mention dent their yearly budget. They had to leave the ice block as is. 

"You left him out in the open like this?!" The silver haired one screeches, appalled and affronted. 

"Of course not! We had a rotating roster of volunteers to watch over him. I believe some of the students even camped out here," Chiyo answers for him.

"It was a slumber party," Yagi adds. "They made a game of trying to get him out. Nothing worked."

"Of course, nothing worked!" Byakuran laughs. "You had no idea what you were dealing with!"

"How dare you! Playing around with the Tenth's welfare at stake!" The silver-haired one runs up to the ice block. He wipes away the frost and peers inside. "Tenth, it's me. It's Gokudera Hayato. Your right-hand man. I'm here to save you!"

The smiling, black-haired boy approaches Gokudera, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "He means _we're_ here to save you. Hi, Tsuna. In case you can't tell, it's Yamamoto. But really, you need to start calling me Takeshi. All of us are here - Senpai, Chrome, Hibari-senpai, and of course, Lambo. Oh, Yuni and Byakuran too. They kinda had to come."

Yagi clears his throat. "I'm afraid he can't hear you. He hasn't responded to any outside stimulation since he first arrived."

Yamamoto turns to Yagi, and the look in his eyes carries a weight and a wisdom that doesn't belong to someone so young.

"He can always hear me," Yamamoto tells them with a muted grin.

"Dame-Tsuna!" Lambo dashes forward and crashes right into the block. A resilient child, he doesn't appear hurt and starts pounding the ice with tiny fists. "Dame-Tsuna, wake up! You gotta play with the Great Lambo-sama!"

The others, saving the needle-eyed boy, get closer.

"You're gonna be extremely okay, Sawada," the still unnamed grey-haired one announces, resting an open palm on the ice.

"Hi, Boss," a dark-purple haired girl murmurs, running a couple fingers down the smooth surface.

Nedzu noted all the various terms they called Tsunayoshi. "Sawada" is presumably his last name. "Dame-Tsuna" would be a nickname assigned by a younger sibling. "Tsuna", of course, is simply a shortened version. But "Tenth" and "Boss" are curious choices. "Tenth" implies a series, a succession, and "Boss" implies leadership, a central figure. Presumably, "Tenth" refers to "Boss", but the boss of what? A club?

"Don't you wanna get close too, Kyouya-kun?" Byakuran sweetly calls out.

"Who gave you permission to use my name?" The needle-eyed boy, Kyouya, pulls a tonfa out of his sleeve. "I'll bite you to death."

"Oh man! I was wondering when we'd hear that catchphrase!" Yamamoto chuckles.

Not a single one from their group seems remotely bothered by the sudden appearance of Kyouya's weapon. But himself, Yagi, and Chiyo are all taken aback. In this day and age, with quirks presenting the more immediate threat, no one really carries a weapon anymore. And even when speaking of weapons, Nedzu had knives, pepper spray, or even a gun in mind. But a tonfa? That was straight out of those old martial arts films. Yet it appears that Kyouya carries one regularly or else his group would be more concerned. And what was that catchphrase? Bite to death? Strange boy.

"How do you plan on freeing the boy? Tsunayoshi, was it?" Chiyo asks. "We never did catch your names."

Yuni gasps. "Oh! Apologies, we're a touch distracted as you can see. Time is of the essence." She bows. "Thank you for taking care of Tsuna-kun."

"What is the plan?" Gokudera cuts in, facing her.

Straightening up, Yuni meets his narrowed gaze. "Focus on him. You feel it, right? It's muffled, growing weaker actually. But it is there. Concentrate."

Gokudera turns to the ice block once more. He places both hands on it, squeezing his eyes shut. Beside him, the others copy his actions, even the small Lambo. Nedzu could only watch in puzzled silence.

"What are they sensing?" Yagi asks.

Yuni grins at them. "You'll see. It won't cause you any harm. But it will be… A bit flashy."

"Ha! As if we could be anything else!" Byakuran adds, beaming.

"Quiet," Gokudera snaps out.

Yuni approaches the ice, Byakuran at her heels. 

"You have it? A solid connection?" she asks, placing one hand on the block. 

"Yeah…" Yamamoto answers through grit teeth.

"Okay everyone, please step back. We're gonna need space. Only me and Byakuran need to keep contact with the ice." 

Byakuran nods, his grin never fading, carelessly patting the ice. While everyone else appears composed and determined - a serious set to their mouths, Byakuran looks bemused - as if watching a curious but not completely captivating show. Gokudera and Yamamoto shoot him suspicious glares, but whatever concerns they may have, neither speak it aloud. Stranger and stranger still.

Obviously, most of them care about this Sawada Tsunayoshi. So either Byakuran is the odd man out, simply here for whatever reason. Or, he's in cahoots with Yuni and he knows more than the rest. Yuni _is_ likely to be lying. Perhaps, Tsunayoshi really isn't dying. Nedzu feels his ears flattening against his head. Perhaps he should stop this - whatever this is. 

Except… If Yuni isn't lying… If Tsunayoshi is getting weaker…

Turning his head slightly, Nedzu catches the eye of Yagi. The man nods ever so slowly. They must be prepared for anything.

* * *

"It must be cold in there, Tsuna," Takeshi murmurs softly, leaning forward and pressing his brow against the ice. "Sorry we took so long."

A low, ringing sound fills the courtyard. 

"Oh wonderful," he hears the principal say. "That's the lunch bell. Whatever you plan to do, please do so quickly. We are about to have an audience."

"Yamamoto-kun?" Yuni calls out to him.

Takeshi breathes in deep and slow. Then he pushes away from the ice, clutching his Vongola necklace. He joins the rest, standing a loose circle around the block.

"We need to Harmonize, all of us with Tsuna-kun. Activate your flame, but slowly - one by one. If we push too fast, we risk hurting him." Yuni pauses, squaring her shoulders. "First Sasagawa-san, then Lambo-chan, followed by Yamamoto-kun, Chrome-chan, Hibari-san, and finally Gokudera-kun. Byakuran and I will go last."

"The full color spectrum, starting with the yellow-sun, eh?" Gokudera mutters.

"Yes. Precisely." Yuni nods. "Whenever you're ready, Sasagawa-san."

"EXTREEEEEME!" 

"Well, if we hadn't caught the students' attention before, we certainly have now," the old lady murmurs. From her uniform, Takeshi suspects she's the school nurse. She looks a lot more dependable than Dr. Shamal, that's for sure.

"Chiyo, if you could keep the students away, I'd be much obliged. And send Aizawa this way. He's likely to be curious and already heading here," the principal tells her.

He's funny, this principal. Some kinda dog-bear-mouse dude, not the weirdest Takeshi has seen but still pretty weird. Gokudera had the most starstruck expression when they first saw him. Seriously though, the guy has some major brain power chugging up in his noggin. He almost kept them from Tsuna and that would've been unforgivable. Especially considering what Yuni said. Talk about a bombshell.

Ah, that Yuni. All sweetness and softness up until she's not, up until she's unyielding steel - cutting and cold. Takeshi wonders if this is how he makes others feel - out of sorts and mildly anxious. If so, no wonder Hayato gets so irritated with him.

"Alright, Lambo?" Senpai ruffles the kid's hair. "Let's give this an extreme shot."

Lambo nods, mouth curled tight. They've long since styled down his afro into a more manageable cut. He now relies on a backpack to carry all his usual stuff. Opening it now, he pulls out his Vongola gear - the Lightning Helm.

"Sawada!" Senpai shouts, right hand clenched into a fist, his Sun armlet lighting up bright enough to blind. The flame travels up his shoulder before nesting on his brow. "Wake up!"

"Dame-Tsuna! Come out and play!" Lambo screeches, shoving the Helm on, flame sparking and dancing through his horns. 

Very nice. A hard act to follow. But Takeshi's not about to let them show him up. He clutches the Rain necklace with both hands, squeezing his eyes shut. Ever since they started playing the Mafia game, wherever Tsuna went, Takeshi followed. It took them six months - six months! - six months of frantic searching, tireless investigating, and endless hours of praying, hoping, begging for an answer. This had been the longest time they have ever spent apart. Takeshi didn't realize how necessary Tsuna had become until his absence became a yawning chasm between Takeshi's lungs. It hurt to breathe some days. 

"Tsuna," he murmurs, letting his flames spill and spill and spill.

He feels Chrome and Hibari-senpai join in, indigo and purple streams of pure power. Gokudera follows after, his red burning fiercely - not a hint of any other color in his flame. 

Yuni and Byakuran are next. They told him the order. He should have braced himself. They still take him by surprise. The Great Skies don't sync up with them more than they crash into them, high tides of harmonic energy threatening to tear the connection apart. Takeshi hisses, pushing down a reflexive urge to flinch. 

Wrong, wrong, wrong! Not his Sky! Not his! Not his! But he knows that! Thank you very much. It's the whole, stupid point to all of this. They're trying to reach his Sky. So if his hindbrain could just please shut up -

The resonance smooths out. It happens in the space of a second. The Great Skies got pushed to the back somehow, letting him and his fellow Guardians take the lead. If Takeshi could speak, he'd describe it as a hmmmm and a zzuuuung and a viiiiiiiiin. To sum it up shortly, it felt like strings being tuned, delicate chords tightened to hit the right note. Takeshi saw that done once, when Gokudera did some maintenance on his piano. He kept pressing the same key until the messy, itchy noise turned clear and crisp. Everything made sense again. 

Together, they brush against a dark, silent wall where Tsuna should be. The chill is sharper here with his flame senses. Some part of him cries out. The ice feels empty but almost aggressively so, the way black holes don't simply sit in space but actually, actively sucks stars into its field of gravity. Contrary to Gokudera's belief, he knows about stuff other than baseball. He's read a few of Gokudera's UMA tabloids. He's got some idea about all this. 

The others reach out, same as him. Communicating via flame is both really intimate and incredibly removed. It's like someone reached into his skull but touched his brain through a thick blanket. Weird, just plain weird. But they think faster this way. Eight heads are better than one. They all get the same idea. 

Takeshi grits his teeth and summons every ounce of Will, of desperation, of please please please just get his Sky back! Whatever it takes, whatever he needs to do. For Tsuna. Tsuna. Tsuna!

The ice cracks like a gong struck. The sound is loud and echoing. There's a flicker of - yes! That's it! Almost got him!

* * *

Yuni wasn't kidding about the flashy bit. All eight youngsters light up in every color of the rainbow. The aura appears to resemble fire, flickering and dancing like it does. And yet, even standing relatively close, Nedzu doesn't feel hot. It's quite a strange phenomenon and the genius in him wants nothing more than to dissect this aura. Perhaps later. One does like to live in hope.

He hears the students whispering all around him. They have attracted quite a large audience, as expected. He's fairly sure the whole student body and every single staff member came to watch. At least Chiyo handled the crowd control admirably. Everyone stayed a safe distance away.

Ears twitching, Nedzu picks up a low, ringing note. It appears to be audible only to those with animal-senses since the all-human students pay it no mind. The sound isn't particularly irritating, quite the opposite in fact. It's subtle yet soothing. 

He watches a crack appear on the ice. Waves of light pulse out in rhythmic intervals like a drumbeat in visual form. It sweeps through the courtyard, emitting no heat or force, just pure and near-blinding light. More cracks appear and then, slowly but surely, steam hisses out. The block melts away, shrinking around the boy until finally, his fluffy hair peeks out. On his brow, the flame, or flame-look-alike, starts to flicker and dance like all fire does. 

The strange youngsters intensify their flame-like auras. The ice slips off Tsunayoshi's shoulders, down his curled arms and clasped hands, away from his bent knees and folded legs. When the boy's body is completely free, left sitting in his frozen throne, only then does Tsunayoshi finally open his eyes. Amber. It's the color of crystallized tree sap, the color of time stuck in a drop, the color of life long forgotten. His eyes are ancient and out of place on such a young face. 

But before Nedzu could truly appreciate that bright gaze, Tsunayoshi's eyes flutter and fall shut. He pitches forward, falling. Byakuran and Yuni quickly dart close and catch him, hands under his arms and over his chest. The blinding light has vanished. Every single colorful flame has winked out. The strange, soothing sound is gone. Only silence rings.

Then a sob breaks free. Gokudera half-staggers, half-runs before collapsing at Tsunayoshi's feet. This tears down an unseen dam amongst their unexpected guests. Yamamoto charges forward, then Lambo. They can't seem to stop their hands, cupping and holding onto whatever of Tsunayoshi they can reach, as if afraid he too would melt into the air. The silver-gray haired one is the last to approach. He yells out another "Extreme!" before running over and scooping Tsunayoshi into his arms. He spins around, roaring over Gokudera's angry concern and Yamamoto's breathless laughter and Lambo's jealous demands. It's enough to rouse Tsunayoshi, if only for half a moment and only to complain about the noise.

"They're going to need a stretcher."

Nedzu doesn't quite jump but it's a near thing. His eyes dart over to the purple haired, eyepatched girl standing just a step to his left. Last he checked, she had been closer to the ice block and far from him. He hadn't even heard her approach. He must have been truly distracted. Adjusting his tie, he turns away and lightly coughs into his fist. 

"Well, miss-"

Facing her once more, Nedzu finds that she has vanished from his side. In the spot where she stood, there's a brand new stretcher. The girl, herself, stands next to that Kyouya boy. Both keep away from everyone else, content to simply watch the reunion. Nedzu almost thinks that he hallucinated her. Except that doesn't explain the sudden presence of a stretcher. So he swears on his tail that she had been right here, to his left. Was it a teleportation quirk? Sniffing the air, he smells no fresh hint of a foreign scent nearby. Hmmm. These guests get curiouser and curiouser.

He clears his throat. "We have a suitable clinic for you to use, if you'd like. At least some place for Tsunayoshi to rest before the ambulance gets here."

"Ambulance?" Yamamoto echoes.

"Che! We don't need an ambulance," Gokudera scoffs. 

"But your friend needs care," Yagi protests.

"Yes, of course," Byakuran chirps with a light chuckle. "But no hospital around can help Tsuna-kun. Only we can assist in his recovery!"

"I must firmly dis-" 

"With that being said!" Byakuran barrels on. "Lead us to the clinic! Tsuna-kun needs some place safe and quiet to rest and recuperate!"

Yagi makes a soft, uncertain noise. Nedzu shakes his head. Apparently no one taught manners to Byakuran, or at least to display a minimal amount of respect for his elders. 

"Sasagawa-san," Yuni gently calls out. "Please put Tsuna-kun on the stretcher. It'd be best to escape the crowd and their scrutiny, hm?"

Sasagawa is apparently the unnamed, silver-gray haired boy. He nods at Yuni with a loud "Ossu!" before striding to the stretcher and setting down Tsunayoshi. His hand deftly lingers in the fluffy, brunette hair before he steps aside.

"Well lead the way, Mr. Principal," Yamamoto chimes in, grinning again. But he looks more certain now, more stable.

All of them seem that way, less of a pastiche pasted on their faces and more of a completed mosaic with all the right pieces in all the right places. For a single, simple-looking boy, he has caused such a drastic change. And Nedzu thought freeing him from the ice would answer most of his questions. How naive. He almost doesn't comprehend it - him - them. But really, what is almost except for another way to say "not"? He doesn't not comprehend it. He's certain that given enough time, enough digging - this riddle wrapped in an enigma will be solved.

* * *

After such a light show, the students are more distracted than ever. Gossip possesses the school like an especially vengeful demon from a horror movie. Rumors fly around campus grounds. Theories toss about the hallways. Even classrooms aren't safe. It took four tries before his kids settled down. Everyone wants to pitch some new, hare-brained hypothesis on their guests. 

Shouta wants to nap forever. Like that boy - the once frozen boy - is doing. Okay, okay. He admits to getting a little curious and snooping a bit. Really, he just walked past the infirmary and glanced inside. It took him five minutes to finish glancing around but it's still just a glance. Honest. 

The boy is laid up on one of the beds. Somehow, five teenagers and a child managed to squeeze and stack themselves onto that very same bed with him. According to Shuzenji-san, they haven't moved much from that puppy pile. The other two teens, Byakuran and Yuni - no last names on either, deliver their meals and any other things they may need. Of course, eventually, they did need the toilet and miscellaneous hygiene stuff. But they left in shifts. There was always someone with the thawed out boy, like a kind of security rotation. 

As for the boy himself, he's pretty much in a coma. Shuzenji-san set them up with an IV drip, and that was all she could do. The group refused to move their friend to a hospital. Their protests nearly got violent at one point that finally, she dropped it if only to keep the peace. She hates it though, make no mistake, and tells everyone within earshot how she remains intensely against it. 

By mid-week, the other teens have started to gravitate away from their friend. He apparently woke up a few times, enough to show he's recovering. Shouta hears his colleagues talk about their encounters. There's always some kind of chatter going on in the teacher's lounge. He learns their names this way.

Sasagawa Ryohei, supposedly the eldest at 17, is a boxing maniac. He appears to have some kind of strength enhancement or stamina enhancement quirk. He's been working out at the gym and occasionally sparring with a few students. The consensus is that he's loud, clueless, but extremely friendly. He's always available to spot someone, gives great workout tips, and insists on starting a boxing club regardless of the fact that he doesn't even go here. Somehow, he already has five members.

Yamamoto Takeshi, at 15, is a baseball fiend. He just entered high school and he's planning to join the pro-leagues. He hopes to one day play a game in America, but he's not picky where. He's got some sort of soothing presence. He's managed to defuse at least five (known) arguments between his friends and the students, between his friends and the teachers, and even between the students and other students. It's unknown if that's his quirk or if he's just a really chill guy. Shouta wants him in his class. Apparently, he somehow got Bakugou to walk away from an argument. Incredible.

Speaking of Bakugou, the guests have their own version in Gokudera Hayato, age 15. He's a punk. He curses like a sailor in at least three languages. He's constantly smoking or reeks of smoke. Shouta has _suspicions_ about that, related to how the kid is always picking fights. Surprisingly, he mostly argues with adults, not the students. Except for one incident. He and Bakugou nearly threw down in the hallway if not for Yamamoto mediating. Now his quirk is less apparent, although it may have something to do with explosions. Shouta has heard some noises but if anyone has seen what that boy's been up to, no one is saying a word. 

Dokuro Chrome, age unknown, goes by nearly unnoticed compared to her friends. She does have a disturbing tendency to disappear and reappear at odd and unexpected places. People claim that they blink and suddenly find her no longer present. This most likely is her quirk. But there's really not much to say about her because she hardly talks to anyone, not the faculty or the students. She's probably just shy, they assume. But something pricks at Shouta's instincts when they tell him this. He's caught glimpses of her and the way her eye takes note of everything around her. She doesn't seem tongue-tied, more like she's waiting. For what, he has no idea.

Bovino Lambo, age 7, isn't allowed anywhere without one of his brother's friends. His brother is, of course, the ice cube boy. Within five seconds of meeting this brat, it's very easy to understand the constant requirement for supervision. Quiet and obedient, he is not. He's always trying to escape his babysitters. He's constantly asking anyone to play with him. He once mistook a student to be giant grape candy and attempted to eat him. The brat had left teeth marks on his victim and got scolded for it. But supposedly, right after, he received a big bundle of grape candy on the sly. Shouta does so wonder how that happened. As for quirks, the kid seems to be capable of something like electric discharge. Every single time he throws a tantrum, which is often, sparks emit from the horns on his head. He doesn't have a lot of control, understandably due to being a baby brat.

Hibari Kyouya, age unknown, is a menace. Shouta can say this with confidence as Hibari is the only one he's had the misfortune of meeting in-person. This kid went around the school, enforcing school rules that certainly weren't Yuuei's rules. He objected to the students "crowding" in the hallways. He disapproved of loud noises, even during lunch break. He heavily criticized students for failing to follow the dress code. Shouta suspected that Hibari just hated their uniform period. He caught the kid trying to "discipline" some poor bystanders and attempted to stop him. Hibari viewed this as a challenge and swung a tonfa at him. 

The following altercation was… strange. Shouta had fully prepared himself to use Erasure at any given moment. His prior experience told him that Hibari was bound to start attacking him with a quirk, as all obviously violent people do. But Hibari does not. Either the boy has knowledge of Quirk Law (doubtful as he seems uninterested in anything except his own made-up rules). Or, and this is the real kicker, Hibari Kyoya didn't see a need to use his quirk. Now that would be really interesting. The boy was clearly a capable fighter, and okay in full disclosure, Shouta had been _this_ close to using a few dirty tricks. The boy was brutal, skilled, and disturbingly experienced in combat. Shouta had been ready to try some very unsound strategies when they were interrupted.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, age 15, is a thin, tired boy. He had yelled out Hibari's name, causing the boy to freeze in mid-swing. The tonfa had hung a finger-span from Shouta's nose. They had both turned to find Sawada out of bed for once. His legs trembled, struggling to keep him standing. But his shoulders were squared and his back was straight. He looked ahead with bright eyes, carrying a presence befitting a commander. This had been Shouta's first impression of the once frozen, now thawed out, ice cube boy. A bit impressive, he'll admit, if only Sawada hadn't collapsed immediately after he caught their attention. 

Hibari had abandoned Shouta in a heartbeat. He managed to catch Sawada before his face met the floor. Then he threw the boy over his shoulder and walked away without even a glance back. Shouta didn't get a chance and has yet to properly address Hibari's attempts to "discipline" the students of Yuuei. He'd like to, of course. But the boy hasn't been seen since. Presumably, Sawada spoke with him about it. 

At least, the school is left relatively peaceful once more. Exceeeept… Shouta has heard some very disturbing rumors with regards to the rest of Mustafu. There's apparently a teenager, roaming around the streets, beating villains up, and no one can adequately entrap him since he isn't using any quirks in his vigilantism spree. Ah well. Hibari is the police's problem now.

As for the other two, Byakuran and Yuni, they're busy with the Principal. They did formally introduce themselves to the faculty, apologizing for all the trouble and thankful for all the help. They seemed very polished in their speech, as if they were used to being the spokesmen - the representatives - the diplomats. Well, alright, Yuni did a good job. Byakuran simply stood there and smiled, occasionally nodding to emphasize points in Yuni's speech. Shouta didn't trust it - either of them. 

During a private meeting, with a select few staff plus Tsukauchi in attendance, they briefly explained their circumstances. Apparently, they are from a different dimension, an alternate reality. Heroes don't exist there, or not in the same shape and manner. There are people gifted with special abilities. But those are few and far in between, preferring to remain mostly unknown. Evidently, their friends and themselves are among the rare few with special abilities. 

As for Sawada Tsunayoshi, they have absolutely no idea how he got here. They intend to question him as soon as he recovers enough. But they did speculate that something happened with Sawada and a mutual, empowered acquaintance which led to his trans-dimensional trip. Shouta noted their careful use of "acquaintance". To quote Shakespeare, "I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I bite my thumb, sir". He's fairly sure Shakespeare wrote that. He only knows English stuff through osmosis - a side effect to befriending Hizashi. So he's not a completely uncultured bastard, thank you much.

From this short (exceedingly short) explanation, Shouta understood that this other world may not have heroes, but it does have sides - the "with us" side and the "against us" side. He doesn't know if either has any moral high ground of any sort. But he's got a feeling, just a hunch since he's got no proof, that stuff like morals and ethics, truth and justice, aren't that world's biggest concern. 

There's just something about the way Byakuran and Yuni skirted around their words. They never said what the powerful people did, for example. Shouta can't expect all of them to be subdued saints, happy to live their days in anonymity. He'd like to believe that theirs might be a kinder world. But Sawada's presence here already hints otherwise. And Shouta might not know a lot about their world but he knows power, and power can warp even the best of intentions.

The pair concluded their introduction with a promise to leave soon. They're worried that Sawada might not survive the trip if they attempt to leave now. They estimate at least a fortnight before they can move on. Wonderful. Fantastic. Shouta takes Nedzu aside and suggests they check these teens into a hotel, get them and their troubles away from the students. 

Nedzu worries that would bring their guests unnecessary attention. And they've been docile (for the most part) because the school hasn't proven to be a threat. Nedzu can control that status quo here, on campus. But out there… Even with his genius intellect, he hesitates to calculate the blast radius. Shouta clicks his tongue and concedes to the Principal's wisdom. 

It seems for now… They can only keep a watchful eye on their guests.

* * *

Shoto doesn't know what woke him up. But it's about four in the morning, and the sun hasn't even risen. He scratches his head, pulls on shoes and a jacket, then goes out. A brisk walk might energize him for the day or it could tire him out for at least another hour of sleep. He can cut it close. It's one of the good things about living on campus. Getting to class is now quick and easy.

He passes by the baseball field where he notices a flickering light. With Endeavor as a father, he recognizes firelight when he sees it. With Endeavor as a father, his stomach twists at the sight and he immediately assumes the worst. He should call the emergency line, get some firefighters down here. But he has an ice quirk and he panics. He runs over, thinking it's something he can handle. 

There is a fire. But it's not some arsonist or accident. It's the boy from the ice. Shoto easily recognizes that fluffy brown hair. It's been a whole week since he's been freed. Supposedly, his name is Sawada Tsunayoshi. That's all anyone heard from their teachers and friends. They don't know about his family or his home. But now, Shoto can answer the quirk question. It's fire manipulation.

Sawada is sitting on the bleachers. He's got a purple-haired girl - Dokuro Chrome, and a little boy - Bovino Lambo, sitting with him. Sawada has a small fire cupped in his hands. He breathes out and it grows. He breathes in and it shrinks. Weirdly enough, delicate rings of light emanate from it. That's definitely not something fire usually does. Shoto would know. 

Looking around, Shoto sees all of Sawada's other friends. Yamamoto Takeshi is practicing his swings with a borrowed bat - Shoto assumes it's borrowed. Sasagawa Ryohei is running laps around the field, shadow boxing the air. Gokudera Hayato sits on the pitcher's mound, a cigarette stuck between his teeth, tossing a (hopefully) borrowed baseball up and down. 

There's another rumor somewhat confirmed. Supposedly, their guests are Sawada's entourage of some sort. They never leave him alone. There's always someone with him. People think that means he's some kind of V.I.P. But the specifics range from a corporate heir to obscure royalty. Some also say that Sawada and company aren't even from this world. They're aliens or something. They don't look very alien to Shoto. But then, he does go to class with Ashido Mina so…

"You can come closer if you like," a voice calls out.

Shoto winces and searches for the speaker. It is none other than Sawada Tsunayoshi. The boy still has fire in his hands, now bigger than before. 

"Cut that out," Shoto tells him. "What are you doing? With such blatant Quirk usage?"

The fire flutters, as if panicking. Pft, yeah sure. Fires don't panic. He honestly has no idea where that thought came from.

"Ah! I'm so sorry! I just - You see - There's -"

"Oh please," Gokudera barks out. "What are you gonna do? Arrest us?"

Shoto scowls. "I have enough reason to report you."

"Tch, so? We got reasons too. Good ones even. Don't start on shit you know nothing about. And mind yer own damn business."

"Gokudera..." Reproach fills Sawada's tone. 

Immediately, Gokudera quiets down, abiding by the unspoken order. Sawada really must be somebody important. Regular friends don't just obey each other like that. Or Shoto doesn't think so. Honestly, he's still new to this whole friendship thing. He's not in any position to make sweeping claims. But from his observations of Class 1-A, he's never seen anything like the way Gokudera and Sawada interact.

"The Flame won't burn unless I let it," Sawada tells Shoto with a small, uncertain smile. "It's a bit of exercise… That is - Well, I don't mean any harm."

He probably assumes Shoto fears fire. And it's a logical assumption to make, considering his face and all. Except Shoto isn't afraid and he detests pity especially due to his scar. Still he does have a right to be wary. Strangers showing off their quirks - that only spells trouble.

Shoto shrugs. "It's really not up to me."

"You gonna snitch?" Gokudera squints at him.

"Oh c'mon," Yamamoto cuts in. "He doesn't seem like that kinda guy."

"How the fuck can you tell? We literally just met him. He could be a serial killer for all we know."

Shoto rolls his eyes. "No. I'm training to be a hero. You're staying at a school for heroes. This is a Hero Academia."

"And? That's just a load of pizza shit," Gokudera mutters, taking a drag of his cigarette.

Sawada chuckles nervously. He does pretty much everything nervously. "Ah, I believe - Gokudera meant to ask - what does it matter? Being a hero doesn't disqualify you from being an asshole."

Shoto hums a flat note, mouth twitching up. He knows better than to get friendly with these guys. They're a riddle wrapped in an enigma trapped in a puzzle box, or maybe a jack-in-the-box. One day, when Shoto and all of Yuuei least expect it, they'll pop out from this pretend politeness, and show off their true intentions. They might not be dangerous, per se. But they are trouble. He should walk away. But somehow, he can't bring himself to move.

"I'm still not a serial killer," Shoto tosses back. "But how do I know you're not?"

Sawada sighs, his smile fading. At his side, without prompting, Dokuro sticks her whole hand into the fireball. The act causes Shoto to flinch hard, eyes widening. He half-expects Dokuro to start screaming and to pull out a burned husk of a hand. But Dokuro remains silent, staring at the fire enveloping her limb. Sawada watches her, not reacting at all except to blink slowly. 

"Chrome, what are you up to?" Sawada asks, tilting his head. 

"Proving a point," she answers, setting her eye on Shoto. "It's safe." 

"Extreme stunt!" Sasagawa shouts, running past.

"Me too! Me too! I wanna touch the sing-sing Flame!" Bovino hops to his feet, sticking both hands into Sawada's fire. 

"Sing-sing Flame?" Sawada echoes, confused.

"Pretty sure he means the Harmonization factor," Gokudera answers. 

"Yeah, it has a sound," Yamamoto adds. "Kinda like a nnnngg or maybe a whmmm-"

"It's more of an EXTREME zzzzmmm!" Sasagawa yells out from across the field. 

" _Salvami da questi idioti._ " Gokudera grumbles, running a hand down his face. Shoto didn't know what language that was. Spanish, maybe. It definitely wasn't English. 

Bovino cackles in that high-pitched way that all of Yuuei has gotten familiar with. His hands cup and curl over the fire like he's trying to shape especially slippery sand. "Look! Look! It's Ahoudera's head!"

Gokudera flicks a cigarette butt in Bovino's direction. "That looks nothing like me!"

Dokuro's lips curve up, not quite a smile but close enough. She shares a look with Sawada, the kind carrying an entire conversation. After a moment, Sawada shakes his head but there's a gentleness to it, more relenting than forbidding. Dokuro looks back at the fire. Shoto swears there's a flash of indigo - or violet - just a dark, hazy color.

The fire leaps and dances around Dokuro's hands. It grows big, then bigger, swirling into a pillar. Shoto is about to remind them again about the rules of quirk use. But then, the fire bursts into an owl - or, a flicker of fire takes the form of an owl. It's an ember-orange, with a wide wing span, soaring around the baseball field before diving straight at him. 

Shoto reels back, attempting to dodge away. But the owl pulls up at the very last second, talons never grazing a hair on his head. With fluid light and graceful, silent movement, the owl circles him. It only has a vague impression of a face but Shoto senses that it's grinning at him, somehow - not maliciously but maybe with mischievous intent. After a final turn, it soars back to Dokuro and roosts on her shoulder.

More spectral animals form from the fire. A leopard leaps forth, lunging down the bleachers and padding up to Gokudera. He huffs quietly but reaches over to pet it. A smaller bird - a crow? a sparrow? flies out with a dog following after, both heading for Yamamoto. He laughs loudly, offering a hand to each animal. Then a large and monstrous-looking bull springs into the air, to Bovino's endless delight. His arms open wide as if pleading for a hug. 

The creatures grow exotic from there. A kangaroo jumps forth, skipping over to Sasagawa and keeps pace with his run. He cheers loudly and runs even faster. A sleepy hedgehog toddles out then zooms over to the roof of a nearby equipment shed. There's that other guy (Hikari? Hidari?) lying back, without a care. Shoto didn't even notice him. Has he been there this whole time?

"Tsk, tsk, Tsuna-kun," someone says from behind him. Shoto whips around to find that Yuni girl with that Byakuran guy heading his way.

"We're supposed to keep a low profile," Yuni continues, sighing.

"Oh, Yuni-chan, why do you even bother? Clearly, we know nothing of discretion!" Byakuran laughs.

The pair has been spotted all over campus. A few students have managed to speak with them. Yuni is considered charming. Byakuran is considered strange. They draw attention wherever they go. There's just something about them - not necessarily their looks or their speech. Really, seeing them now, Shoto can't say that they appear particularly weird, with no extra limbs or dramatic color schemes - or at least, dramatic compared to the rest of Yuuei. 

But there is something to the way they walk, how their eyes glint like a blade catching light. They come closer, nodding at him with a smile - Yuni's softer than Byakuran. And Shoto feels seen - no, not just seen… _seen through_. 

"Good morning!" Yuni greets him.

"Well if it isn't Minty-zaki!" Byakuran follows up.

"Not quite. I believe it's Todoroki-san, yes?"

Shoto nods, choosing to keep silent, and turns away, avoiding their gaze. Movement catches his attention, causing him to glance up. He watches more of those strange, fiery creatures sweep through the sky. A dragon and a capybara, of all things, breeze past him, circling a bemused Byakuran and a weary Yuni.

Something nudges his knee. He looks down to find a lion - a literal, full-grown, bushy-maned lion. To his credit, he doesn't scream. Actually, he doesn't make a noise at all. He might be more frozen than his targets during quirk practice. 

The lion weaves between his legs, weightless and warm. Shoto doesn't mean temperature either. He can't feel a hint of heat. It's the fuzzy, fueling kind, at home between his heart and lungs. He's only felt this on mornings with Fuyumi, without Father, only tea and clumsily stewed soup. It brings back memories, old memories - rare memories, when Mother held him without fear or flinching. It's a fragile and terrifying warmth - terrifying due to its fragility. He steps away from the lion. 

Yuni allows the capybara to nuzzle her hand. "We can't cause a scene. We made a promise to Principal Nedzu."

"You already have," Shoto points out. "Your first day here. Hard to miss that."

"He has a point," Byakuran says, the dragon draped across his shoulders like a scarf.

"Well, if we already made a splash, then let's not make the waves bigger," Yuni replies, her mouth set in a firm line.

Sawada cringes. "Ah! I was - There's just - " He hangs his head low and heavy. "I'm terribly sorry."

"It was my idea," Dokuro adds.

"Che, it ain't even that noticeable." Gokudera says, batting away the ghostly leopard's swipes at him.

"We came here precisely because we saw Tsuna-kun's flame. And we weren't anywhere near the baseball field," Yuni says.

"Eeeh?!" Sawada yelps. "But I kept it so small..."

"Your fire is strange," Shoto says. "It radiates light over a surface area bigger than physically possible…" He clears his throat. "...Basically, it's very bright."

Sawada offers a sheepish smile. He nods at Dokuro. She nods back. The fiery animals move in orchestrated unison, rising into the air and floating towards Sawada. They swirl above him, gently descending, one by one, into the fire still cupped in his palm. The lion goes last, disappearing with a ringing roar. Yuni sighs again, this time with a touch of attitude.

"Can you teach me that?" Shoto hears himself asking, the question escaping his lips before his thoughts could leash it.

"That?" Gokudera scoffs. His hair is oddly ruffled, likely the work of that fire-formed leopard. "You mean conjuring fire? Don't you know a quirk when you see one?"

Shoto snaps his fingers, summoning a candle's worth of fire. "I'm Endeavor's son."

"Ha! Who's doing casual quirk use now?" Gokudera barks out. 

Shoto scowls and snuffs out the fire. 

"If you already know that, then what am I supposed to teach you?" Sawada tilts his head.

"You said your fire doesn't burn unless you want it to. Teach me that."

Sawada blinks at him. "Can I… Um… Huh… I don't know…" He catches the eye of either Yuni or Byakuran, possibly both. "... It's a Family thing…"

"I see. So it _is_ specific to your quirk?"

"Not quite! If there's a Will, there's a way!" Byakuran cheers. "Surely Try-Hard's kid can do it."

"Endeavor," Yuni corrects. "His father is called Endeavor."

"Isn't that what I said?"

Shoto snorts, not quite a laugh but almost. He's been doing that a lot, almost laughing - almost smiling. He's not usually so quick to express emotion. A bit of an ice prince, some call him. He's not insulted or anything. It's an accurate description. And yet… There's a foreign sensation, curling up in the back of his throat. No doubt, it's responsible for all these almosts. He feels… light? cheerful? amused? No, that's not right. More like… 

These total strangers remind him of his classmates, in a way. Such a noisy and crazy bunch, he thinks. Trouble-makers, hell-raisers, fire-starters, they seem like chaos incarnate. They seem like a lot of fun. Ah! That's it! This feeling… He's having fun. That explains his reluctance to leave. He can't help but warm up to them. Pun intended, he supposes. 

"Maa, maa… Tsuna's all tuckered out," Yamamoto announces. "Guess we better pack up."

Shoto looks over and finds Sawada asleep against Dokuro's shoulder. He must be incredibly tired to nod off that quickly. 

"Oh dear, Tsuna-kun really shouldn't have pushed himself," Yuni murmurs. She bows to Shoto. "Have a pleasant morning, Todoroki-san. Hopefully, we didn't disturb your rest."

He shrugs. "I was already awake."

"We better get Tsuna-kun back to the infirmary." Byakuran nods at him. "See you later!"

"Sure." Shoto doesn't really expect them to follow through. There's something weird about that fire. He knows they know he knows. It's nothing but a polite fiction.

They leave. They didn't _all_ have to. Dokuro or Yamamoto or any _one_ could have brought Sawada to the infirmary. But they went together, the entire group. Sawada really must be some kind of VIP. 

Once they're out of sight, he inspects his pants. The flame-lion's fur definitely touched the fabric. Yet, he sees no singed spots or charred patches. A shapeshifting flame that doesn't burn… How fascinating. Midoriya could likely write a whole dissertation on its usage. There's search and rescue, crowd control, communication - just to name a few applications. 

But Shoto fixates on the lack of damage, the absence of ruin. It was fire without destruction, only light and homecoming warmth. He had never entertained such an idea before. And now… He grabs a fistful of his pants, as if seeking traces of the flame. 

Shoto will ask them again. He will ask a thousand times, or a million if necessary. He needs to know. He wants that painless flame, something his father never thought to try.

* * *

"I refuse," Tokoyami tells them.

"Oh come on!" Tooru whines. "We gotta welcome our guests with wide, open arms!"

"That doesn't mean wide, open doors!"

"Um… We don't need-" Sawada tries to protest.

"But it was so much fun last time!" Ochako argues.

"Fun for you, maybe." Kaminari crosses his arms. "We just got embarrassed."

"Is this really -" Sawada tries again.

"We won't be judging this time!" Mina adds, jabbing a thumb at their guests. "They will."

Sawada points to himself. "Eh? Us?"

"How fun!" Yuni giggles. 

"I didn't get a turn last time," Tsuyu says. "I always wanted another chance."

"See that settles it!" Ochako nods.

"That settles nothing!" Tokoyami spits out.

Tooru has already swept past all of them, opening the door to Tokoyami's room. With great flourish, she waves her sleeves about, drawing everyone's attention.

"And here, we have the first in our dorm exhibition!" She announces, mimicking a tour guide. "An excellent start, wouldn't you say?"

Tokoyami makes a gurgling noise, not unlike the sound of someone choking. He lunges for the door, clearly aiming to slam it shut. But he's too late. Their guests already got a clear look.

"Oh, how lovely," Dokuro murmurs.

" **_You_ ** \- eh?" Tokoyami trips and crashes to a stop. Lifting his head, he gawks at their guest. "Could… Could you repeat that?" 

"I like the ambiance," Dokuro continues. "Dark and haunting. It reminds me of home."

"Haunting..." Tokoyami echoes. His eyes widen. "You understand!"

"The skull motif is pretty nice." Gokudera nods. "You can never go wrong with silver and black."

Ah. They have the same taste in aesthetic. Considering Dokuro's outfits and Gokudera's accessories, it really shouldn't be such a surprise.

Tokoyami looks at Tooru. "And the visitors will pass judgement on our chambers?"

"Uh, yes? Weren't you listening?"

Tokoyami leaps to his feet, a hand sweeping out. "On with the tour!"

"Oh, so now he's invested…" Kaminari clicks his tongue. "Of course, he is."

"Well, you never know." Sero taps his chin. "Since our guests are such wildcards, maybe we have a better chance at winning."

Sero and Kaminari share a look. Grins slowly spread across their faces. The other boys don't look as interested or even remotely invested. And to be fair, this wasn't their idea. Yaomomo suggested giving their guests a tour, and the girls happily agreed. Except for a couple, vocal complaints, the boys allowed themselves to get dragged along. 

It didn't really matter, in the end. This whole exhibition is basically a thinly-veiled excuse to observe these strange, sudden guests. Since their arrival, they've mostly kept their distance. Sure, they spoke with a student here and there, with a few memorable clashes. But that's not nearly enough to get truly acquainted. And after Todoroki mentioned seeing Sawada's quirk, the class has been dying to find out more.

(They had hounded poor Todoroki for every scrap - every bit of information he could give.)

Now with Sawada recovering nicely, he and his friends are given a few spare rooms in the 1-A dorms. And if they're moving into the dorms, however temporary, then that means the teachers have deemed them safe (or at least, posing no harm to the school). So the students must be free to get closer than ever before. Naturally, they started to scheme. All that mystery just begged to be solved.

Their guests don't make it easy. They are an incredibly tight-knit group. Apparently, when Sawada was stuck in the school clinic, they stayed at his side the whole time. They used the remaining beds, or even slept on the floor. This didn't really change when they were moved to the dorms. 

There is enough space for each of them to have their own room. But they insisted on pairing up so they can be together on the second floor. They won't be staying very long, after all. There's no need to go through too much trouble. So they say. 

Yuni and Dokuro take the room across from Tokoyami. Hibari and Yamamoto take the room across from Mineta. Sasagawa and Byakuran take the room across from Aoyama. Gokudera and Sawada, with tiny Bovino squeezed in, take the room across from Midoriya. There had been a messy round of jan-ken-po to decide who would be with Sawada. It was apparently EXTREMELY important.

Tooru wonders about that. Their refusal to separate seemed suspicious. Or to put it plainly, their guests seemed terribly suspicious of _them_ \- the heroes and heroes-in-training. They act as if expecting an attack of some sort. Twitchy. Shifty. Trigger-happy.

"What is your goddamn fucking problem?! Is this a school for heroes or stalkers?" Gokudera spits out.

Speaking of trigger-happy.

They just finished checking out Oojiro's room. He took their last comments to heart and in an effort to spruce up his space more, he hung a few posters on the wall. Unfortunately, it remained pretty plain, especially when compared to the likes of Aoyama and his taste in decor.

"They are giving us a tour." Yamamoto speaks up.

"Did you extremely forget, Octopus-head?!" Sasagawa adds in his usual excessive manner. "They're even showing off their rooms."

"Shut up, you damn Turf-top!" Gokudera snaps. "It ain't like they gotta follow us 'round the whole time! Creepy bastards!"

He really is so similar to Bakugou. It's a bit eerie.

"Oh come on! We just wanna know more about you!" Mina replies, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes. "You get here, no introduction, no announcement, just BWSH! With your fancy light show! No duh, we'd be curious!"

"That's true." Yuni hums in thought. "Then why don't we head over to your common area? We can sit down and have a nice long chat."

"Uh... Yuni…?" Sawada sends her a pinched look.

"That sounds like an excellent idea," Yaomomo says, clapping her hands. "Shall we head there now?"

"Okay!" Yuni cheerily agrees. 

"Eh, wait. The exhibition is over?" Kaminari asks. "But we didn't even get to my room!"

"This was the plan all along," Jiro tells him.

"Then there won't be a final judgement?" Tokoyami presses, sounding disappointed.

Tsuyu pats him on the shoulder.

They shuffle back to the first floor. Everyone is a bit more energetic now, even those invested in the room competition. Of course, they're excited. Answers may finally be within their reach. They quickly settle themselves in the common area, leaving the couch clear for their guests.

Yuni leads her group, most willing to follow without complaint. Except for Sawada, Tooru notices. His lips are pursed, his head tucked in. He radiates an anxious energy, just like Midoriya. For a second, he eyes the open couch like it's an electric chair for his execution. Then, he sighs and plops down. 

"I'll say this first," Yuni begins, taking her seat. She's a tiny thing, a whole head shorter than Tsuyu. But from her poise alone, she made the cheap couch seem like a throne. "We cannot reveal everything to you. Due to the nature of our arrival, some details are highly classified."

"It fucking figures," Bakugou scoffs. He's standing by the wall, leaning against it with arms crossed. 

"If you don't like it, leave," Gokudera snaps back.

"Fuck you, foreigner! Don't tell me what to do!" Bakugou barks out.

"It was an accident, you see," Yuni smoothly interrupts, before either boy can heat up further. "But before we get into the details, allow me to properly introduce myself. My name is Yuni di Giglio Nero. I come from Italy where my family oversees a tech company. We partner with Tsuna-kun's family and Byakuran Gesso's family."

"Gesso?" Tsuyu echoes. "Is that Italian too? But you have a Japanese first name."

"Inter-racial couples do exist, Asui-chan!" Byakuran chirps.

" _Trés bien_!" Aoyama chimes in. "You know, I'm part French myself."

"What is an Italian company doing here in Japan?" Iida asks.

"Italy is simply our base of operations. We have many branch offices in many countries, including Japan," Yuni answers. "But you wouldn't have heard of us. We prefer to contract with discreet clients, you see. Like the military, for example."

"So then what happened?" Mina presses, fidgeting. "You're a tech company, right? For mass communication? For artificial intelligence? Oh! Oh! I know! For weapons!"

"I cannot say." Yuni smiles. "I can say that Tsuna-kun encountered a very volatile… situation. Something went very wrong and he was transported to a coordinate approximately a kilometer above your school."

"What about the ice? And your... " Momo trails off, struggling to describe their eye-catching entrance. 

It had been crazy. They made some sort of light, vaguely resembling fire, with colors ranging the full spectrum of a rainbow. Tooru found it pretty, to be honest. 

"That 'ice' wasn't actually ice. It was a capsule - a protective capsule. We were testing out the limits of its defensive capabilities. As for the… The lights were a by-product of our technology's activation. It's a custom-built emitter for the sole purpose of opening the capsule."

"Is that the reason fire didn't work? It's a… The material is meant to repel damage?" Midoriya asks, a pen and notebook in hand. "But how does it work? What material is it made from?"

"That is exceedingly confidential information. Such durable material can easily be misused. Imagine if a villain got hold of it."

"But… I don't understand…" Todoroki speaks up. "How did Sawada get inside the ice - I mean, the capsule?"

"Please, call me Tsuna," Sawada - that is, Tsuna tells them. "And… Well, the uh capsule is an invention of my Family - my company - I mean, my family's company. So um… I guess… It didn't feel? right? to test it on anyone else."

Ochako gasps. "Tsuna-san! That's incredibly reckless! Why would you do that?"

"I was, um… I got into an argument with my - my tutor. And so, well, I was pissed off. I wanted h-him to take me seriously."

"So you tried to blow yourself up? The hell?!" Bakugou yells.

"That… That was not my intention. I just… I wanted… I wasn't really thinking." Tsuna pauses. "It was a bluff. It was something to scare and shock them, make them sit up and pay attention for once." He rubs the back of his neck. "Oh wow, saying it aloud like that… I sound really childish."

Everyone - her friends, Tsuna's friends - they all pin their gazes on him. Their expressions varied from concerned to horrified to anguished - pure, heartbroken anguish.

"Sawada, that… That's a bit too extreme!" Sasagawa belts out.

"And if Senpai thinks that, then it must be a whole new level of - of - I don't even know." Yamamoto attempts a smile, but it cracks in the corners.

"Tenth?" Gokudera murmurs, in a voice so soft and gentle - Tooru could hardly believe it came from the same curse-slinging boy. 

"It's… It's _Family business_ ," Tsuna spits out the words with enough venom to make a cobra jealous. Instinct tells Tooru that there must be a hidden meaning, perhaps a joke she isn't privy to.

"It really was foolish of you, Tsuna-kun," Yuni says, sharp and cold. Tooru blinks at her, marveling at the abrupt change. Yuni had been the picture of pleasant just a few seconds ago. Now she looked as if butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. "You nearly died. The - The capsule barely had enough life support to last you those six months. If we hadn't found you… You shouldn't have done that!"

For a split second, Tooru swears that Tsuna's eyes turned orange. Then she blinks and sees his eyes remain a plain, common brown. But the look he levels at Yuni… There's nothing plain or common about it. He could flatten a mountain with such a glare.

"I knew you'd say that," he whispers, barely audible. "It really isn't any of your concern."

"Not our concern? What you do affects all of-"

"I said back off!" Tsuna snarls. 

Everyone flinches. Tsuna is a skinny boy, with thin shoulders and delicate wrists. From appearance alone, he resembled a field mouse. Yet the way he sounded just then... It befitted a lion.

Tsuna breathes in deeply, hands curling into fists. He gets to his feet, avoiding everyone's eyes.

"I'm tired. I'll join Lambo in his nap."

"Yes. You need rest. Let me-" Gokudera starts, already moving to follow.

"Don't." It was a single word. But it filled the air with such a solid, suffocating weight. 

Gokudera froze. Everyone froze. Tooru doesn't even dare to breathe. They all watch as Tsuna strides into the elevator. His back faces them even as the doors slide shut. When he was truly out of their sight, they wheezed out a collective gasp.

What the hell was that. Was that a quirk? Or is he just - Tooru can't even begin to explain the last few seconds. She really didn't know how much she didn't know about Tsuna until literally just now. 

"Whoooo, Tsuna-kun got all grumpy!" Byakuran chirps. He appears completely unaffected by Tsuna's outburst. His cheer remains sharp and blinding. "That's a rare sight!"

Yuni purses her lips. She doesn't show a hint of shock, unlike most of her present company. She seems more… worried? Irritated? It's a bit hard to read the pinch of her brow or the bend of her mouth. With such an opaque expression, she nods at them, clearing her throat. 

"Allow me to apologize on his behalf. Tsuna-kun is usually more level-headed. He is under more stress than I first thought."

No one offers a reply. She doesn't even blink, continuing smoothly. "I'm afraid that's all the answers we can give you at this time. Byakuran and I must meet with the principal, to see if we can hasten our departure."

Before anyone could gather their thoughts, she's already heading for the door. Byakuran rolls his eyes and hurries after her. They leave behind silence, spreading thick and sticky, enveloping everyone. 

She peeks at Mina and Ochako, the closest to her. Being invisible, she can't join them in trading looks. But if they could see her, they'd know her expression mirrored theirs - eyes wide open, with eyebrows raised and jaw hanging slack. She glances around and sees everyone trading looks. Apparently, none of them can think of anything to say. Even explosive Bakugou is eerily quiet.

After a half-minute of awkward fidgeting and a lot of expressive eye contact, Yaomomo gamely attempts to connect with their leftover guests. But they seem more shaken than anybody else. At least, the devastation on Gokudera's face is disturbingly clear.

"I have to go check on Hibari-senpai," Yamamoto tells them. "Who knows what kind of trouble he's stirred up by now."

"Yosh. I'll go with you." Sasagawa claps a hand on Yamamoto's shoulder.

The two boys leave with an apologetic wave. Dokuro makes an odd, humming noise. Then she bows low and walks away without another word.

"I need a smoke," Gokudera grumbles.

"Smoking is prohibited on school grounds!" Iida protests. "And you are underaged!"

Gokudera ignores him, and heads for a nearby window. Oh gross. He's going to smoke indoors. That's gonna stink up the place. Tooru's about to voice a complaint. But then Gokudera opens the window and climbs out. What a try-hard. Was it too difficult to use a door? He had to exit through the window? Geez!

"That went fan-fucking-tastic," Bakugou grunts. "Any more bright ideas?"

"It went exactly as planned," Yaomomo replies, lifting her chin. "We know more about them than we did before."

"Is anyone concerned about, you know, the military developing quirk-proof material?" Sero asks.

Midoriya is muttering up a storm. Tooru can't understand a word. Honestly, that's for the best. She did not sign up for diabolical, government conspiracies. Midoriya can keep his conclusions to himself. Thank you very much.

"We got answers but now I have even more questions." Tsuyu frowns.

A sigh travels through their huddled group. They share the same sentiment. And on that note, everyone starts to excuse themselves. Most of the boys leave in a big group, apparently hungry and in need of food. The girls leave in clusters, voicing a need to study or to clean up. Tooru goes with Jiro and Mina, accepting their invitation to study together. 

They don't really study. Their thoughts keep circling back to Tsuna and Yuni and everything else. Their guests have a close relationship. This can't be argued. Except… Tooru frowns, tapping her pencil against the table.

"They aren't very honest," Tooru murmurs. Mina and Jiro glance at her, waiting to hear more. She blows out a breath. "We don't know a lot about them. Yeah, okay. But they don't know everything about each other. I get the feeling… It's like… They don't really talk. There's not a lot of transparency between them. You know?"

"This, from the invisible girl," Jiro teases.

Tooru chucks her pencil at Jiro. "But you get it, right? What I'm trying to say?"

"Yeah, but what can we do?" Mina asks. "Give them group therapy? Relationship counseling?"

"It's not our business anyways," Jiro reminds them.

"I guess…" Tooru says nothing more. But a cold sensation settles in her gut. It feels like she forgot something important, like leaving the oven on or forgetting to unplug her iron. A catastrophe can be easily prevented. If only she knew what the problem was.

* * *

_A few days earlier._

Yuni and Byakuran tangle around Tsuna on the infirmary bed. The Vongola Guardians have been politely but firmly kicked out. For a couple minutes, no more than half an hour, they promise. It's always tricky to negotiate with harmony-deprived guardians. But Yuni and Byakuran manage somehow. And so, they have Tsuna all to themselves. Mwuhahaha.

"Mr. Blue Sky, please tell us why  
You had to hide away for so long," Byakuran sings.

"So long," Yuni continues, always such a team player. "Where did we go wrong?"

"Doo doodoo doodoo-"

"If I answer, will you quit that?" Tsuna groans, tucking his head under the pillow.

Well, they can't have that. Now Byakuran can't see Tsuna's cute face. He's always so much more adorable when he's in great distress. Byakuran steals the pillow away.

"We're just worried about you, Tsuna-kun," Yuni whispers softly. "We felt it, you know. Your disappearance. I thought my heart stopped."

Tsuna groans, sounding both angry and guilty. He runs a hand down his face. "I didn't mean to."

"Well then, what did you mean?" Yuni asks lightly, ever so lightly, like pulling out a jenga piece from the bottom on the tenth turn.

Byakuran wonders about that. He's been wondering a lot about Yuni recently. She hasn't been acting strange, not quite. But she has been acting… And he means _acting_. There's a script somewhere, in her handwriting, with the scenes laid out, with all the roles casted and accounted for. Byakuran has a part to play. He's sure of it. He may not know what that is. Yuni never gave him a copy of the script. Still, he can read between the lines - and see across timelines. 

Tsuna doesn't flinch. Reborn trained him well. Except Byakuran is draped over him like a bonier version of his cape. He can feel the way Tsuna's muscles tighten up, how his shoulders pull in. 

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"How did you end up here?" Yuni presses, a straightforward attack.

"Why do you ask questions that you already know the answer to?" Oooh. A hard counter.

"... And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Tsuna pushes Byakuran off and Byakuran lets him. Kikyo once provided a full-length presentation about this. Personal space, he called it, something of extreme importance to people. 

Oh sure, Byakuran has heard of such a concept. But that's all it ever was to him - a concept, an idea, an abstract thought. Luckily, Kikyo is a very pragmatic man and taught him to recognize the signs - like red means stop, green means go, and if someone jams their elbow into your ribs then they want personal space. So Byakuran backs off.

"Don't pull that innocent gimmick on me." Tsuna rises off the cot, pinning his eyes on Yuni. "As if Kawahira didn't tell you. As if you weren't the first person that Kawahira told."

"Well, _I_ wasn't told," Byakuran chimes in. Because personal space means _space_ so Byakuran can still talk if he wants to. Talking is _sound_ not space. Kikyo hasn't taught him when to shut up just yet.

Tsuna turns to level a frostbitten look at him. Byakuran shrugs. 

"It's true. I don't. You vanished entirely. I couldn't sense you anymore. You ceased to exist in our timeline. And sure, I could see alternate versions of you across multiple possible timelines. But none of those were you - _you_ you." Byakuran tilts his head. "How did you manage that? Honestly, I'm a bit impressed."

Tsuna snorts. It's a loud and ugly sound. "I wanted out. That's all it was. I just thought very hard and very long about getting the hell out."

"And you thought about this in front of Kawahira?" Yuni asks.

Tsuna swings his legs over the cot's edge, shakily standing up. Yuni copies him, planting her feet on the floor. They face each other, like cowboys at high noon. This clinic ain't big enough for the two of them, etc. etc. Byakuran stays seated, wishing for some popcorn.

"Who else could get me out? He started this mess, together with _your_ ancestor. And I'm just the fall guy, the scapegoat, the puppet prince for you to pull and push as it pleases you."

"Whoo, that alliteration!" Byakuran grins. "Nice."

Yuni shakes her head. "That's not true. You know that's not true."

"Do I?" Tsuna clenches his fist. "I have told people, over and over again, that I don't want to be Vongola Decimo or Neo Primo Vongola or whatever else. I don't want anything to do with the Vongola! But they still expect me to become the boss. _You_ expect me to become the boss. _Il Capo di tutti capi_."

"So you ran away to another dimension?" Byakuran wolf-whistles. "Hardcore."

Tsuna rolls his eyes. "I didn't mean to cross dimensions. It was just… Augh!" He combs a hand through his hair. "When Kawahira tried to convince me - saying this was my destiny, this was my fate, well… I panicked."

"You threatened to destroy the Vongola ring. Crush its core to dust," Yuni adds, lifting her chin. 

"I mean… yeah. If there's nothing to inherit, then I can't inherit. It was the only way out."

"A scorched earth tactic. Or in this case, a scorched sky." Byakuran chuckles. "Very thematically appropriate." 

"Shut up, Byakuran." "Yes, do be quiet."

Ah. Well, he's always been a quick study. He considers this as his first lesson. If someone tells him to shut up, then they want him to shut up. That's easy enough to understand. Oh Kikyo would be so proud.

"Did you even consider the consequences of your actions? How that could affect us? Your family?"

"My Family never cared about me so why would I bother caring about them."

"I meant your guardians. Your siblings. You vanished for six months! Everyone was a wreck!"

"That wasn't my fault! Kawahira summoned Bermuda to assist in _controlling_ me. But Bermuda sided with me and tried to help me escape. He opened a portal and that pissed off Kawahira. That guy did… something I don't know."

"Kawahira briefly tapped into the power of the Trinisette. You felt a tug right?"

"Oh. So it wasn't my anxiety?"

"He meant to lockdown Bermuda's portal but he ended up changing it - mutating the energies. And you got sucked in." Yuni takes a step closer, peering into Tsuna's eyes. "No. You let yourself get sucked in. Let me guess… Kawahira tried to grab you and you… You used Zero Point Breakthrough to shield yourself. And that forfeited all your footing so the portal easily pulled you in. Am I right?"

Tsuna straightens his spine, maximizing the few centimeters difference between him and Yuni. His eyes burn a bright, hyper orange. 

"Like I said at the start. Why do you ask questions that you already know the answer to?"

It's a pretty badass moment. Byakuran can practically hear the swelling background music, signalling the climactic event. Except, they aren't in a movie. Byakuran is at least 69% sure. 

In a movie, there'd be an action-packed follow up - usually an explosion, or someone gets shot, etc. But here and now, Tsuna just pitches forward, like a ship tossed around a stormy sea. Yuni catches him, struggling to support him.

"Byakuran, a little help?"

"Oh, can I talk now?" Byakuran perks up, climbing off the cot.

Yuni shoots him a loaded look. Ah. She never did care for his bullshit. His incapacity for silence, his disregard for personal space, neither is due to ignorance. He is, simply put, a little shit. He only shuts up and backs off when someone's got tea to spill. And boy howdy. That was some tea Tsuna dumped all over them. But he can't take all the credit for someone else's brew. 

Byakuran meets Yuni's gaze and gifts her one of his signature teeth-sharp smiles. He wraps his arms around Tsuna and heaves him completely out of her hold. 

This tea has been brewing for years now. It was going to spill. It was bound to bubble out of its little black pot and splash on everything. Sure, maybe no one expected the splash zone to reach a different dimension. Still, the mess was inevitable.

Yuni narrows her eyes before spinning on her heel, leaving the room at a fast clip. Byakuran continues to know nothing about Yuni's plans and plots, her schemes and scripts. Whatever she's up to, it better work. Byakuran sets Tsuna down on the cot, sliding the pillow under his head. Spilled tea needs to be cleaned quickly, before the stain sets in.

* * *

Homeroom brings a surprise to class 1-A. They find Sawada-san standing by the front desks, looking completely spaced out. Before Momo could clear her throat, his eyes dart over and he offers them a shy, shrinking sort of smile. 

"Ah, good morning."

All of 1-A erupts in a cacophony of cries. Everyone calls for his attention. They fire question after question like archers at war. Sawada-san flinches and steps back.

"Please quiet down!" Iida yells out. "Mind your manners! Sawada-san is a guest!"

Momo's classmates slowly hush, save for a few stray murmurs and whispers. Their eyes remain fixed on this so-called guest.

Sawada-san shakes his head. "Ah, just Tsuna is fine. No need to be so formal." 

"Very well. Tsuna-san then." Iida nods, straightening up. "What brings you here?"

"I, um... I didn't mean to - that is - Please excuse my intrusion. I was hoping to speak with all of you and so... Well. It seemed like a good idea to visit during your homeroom period. But uh, hmm... Maybe it wasn't? Sorry."

Sawada - No, Tsuna-san does not resemble himself. And that is such a strange thought. Momo nearly missed her chance to reply.

"You are more than welcome to stay!" Momo channels the full force of her cheer into a friendly grin. "Does Aizawa-sensei know about your visit?"

"Oh! Oh no - I mean, yes - I mean... Well, we - my friends and I planned to check out some classes here. Just to see what everything is like. And, um... You see... Gokudera said that he'd take care of everything. So... I'm assuming..." Tsuna-san sighs, hanging his head.

Yesterday, Momo and her entire class froze after hearing Tsuna-san speak a single word. Now, he rambles on and trails off, unsure and stuttering. He almost appears to be an entirely different person. The steely chill in his demeanor, the gravity held by his posture - none of that is present now. It's enough to make her head spin.

She scrapes up every scrap of her composure, widening her grin. "Then by all means, stay awhile! Homeroom won't start for another few minutes. Why don't we find you a seat?"

"Okay, uh... Thank you again. It's - you know - it's really my bad for springing this on you." Tsuna-san rubs the nape of his neck, chuckling lightly.

She waves off his concern and leaves to borrow a spare desk from their neighboring class. When she returns to the room, Momo finds her classmates flocking around Tsuna-san. Even as he is presently, wearing the air of a wide-eyed wallflower, everyone seems drawn to him, like moths to a flame. They flutter about, questions flapping out their lips. Poor Tsuna-san resembles a rabbit caught in a trap. He holds up his hands before him in a futile attempt to retain some personal space. Iida attempts to corale everyone but they ignore him.

She sets down the new desk and chair with a decisive thud. Drawing everyone's attention, she waves at them.

"Tsuna-san, here you go."

He dashes over, skirting the crowd and crossing the room with more agility than she expected from his knobby knees and trembling shoulders. 

"Oh thank you! I really appreciate this." 

He smiles and his soft sincerity sweeps through Momo like a warm, summer breeze. She smiles back.

With the class somewhat separated from their target, Iida seizes his chance. 

"As you can see, we have plenty to ask you, Tsuna-san. But you came here to tell us something and it is only proper that you say your piece first," Iida glares at everyone, "before we start bombarding you with questions."

There's muffled laughter. All eyes return to Tsuna-san, now seated. His laughter cuts off abruptly when he finds them staring. A pity, Momo thinks. That was the first time she saw him at ease.

"You, ah... It's just... I have a very chaotic family. So I'm used to being mobbed." Tsuna-san drops his gaze to the desk before him. "Actually, that's kinda what I came here to say. Well I mean, it's part of it. Mostly I just... um..."

"Spit it out already!" Bakugo cries out, reaching the limit of his patience. "We only got like 10 more minutes!"

"Bakugou!" Ochako thwaps him on the shoulder.

He pays her no mind, too busy sneering at their guest. 

Tsuna-san hunches over, looking ready to flee. "Right so, yesterday was pretty weird. I mean... I may have lost my temper a bit there. And that had nothing to do with you guys. I'm so sorry about the whole - everything really."

His head hangs lower, a weary sigh escaping him. Momo waits for Tsuna-san to continue. But a half minute passes and he remains silent. 

"That's it?! That's all you have to say?? Unbelievable!"

"Enough, Bakugou."

"Shove it up yer ass!"

"Language! Does no one understand the importance of being hospitable?"

"Psh, hospitable? More like hospitalized. Bakugou looks ready to blow."

"Hey, fuck you!"

"See? Kaboom."

"He came all the way here just to waste my time. Forget that!"

"Well, there is one other thing." Tsuna-san smoothly cuts in, smiling at them.

It's such a peaceful expression, a stark contrast from the anxiety previously twisting his looks. Yet again, Sawada Tsuna seems to have totally transformed. He can wear authority like a cloak, sweeping everyone under the hem. Or he can wilt the way bouquets brown, with leaves shedding and petals shriveling up. Or he can smile. And somehow, Momo is reminded of twilight, of a sky at sunset, of the view between streetlamps and rooftops, of the hour when she finally gets to go home. 

How odd. But Momo can think of nothing else when she sees Tsuna-san smile. He is not a particularly beautiful boy. His looks are nothing special - brown hair, brown eyes, thin arms and twig-like legs. She is not shaken or flustered or any other emotion usually associated with romance or seduction. She feels the exact opposite really, becoming keenly aware of her steady pulse, her solid bones, and the security of her feet planted firmly beneath her. A villain could launch an attack right now and she would not even flinch.

Tsuna-san meets their gaze. "I just wanted to thank you for all that you've done for me. When… When I was in that… capsule… You stuck around. You even had a sleepover and stayed with me overnight."

Tsuyu gasps. "You - You could tell? Weren't you in some kind of coma? That's what we thought. But if you were - if you were awake that whole time…"

She seems unable to finish the thought and it is a particularly nasty one. Imagine being awake but paralyzed - eyes can't open, limbs can't move, mouth can't speak or cry or yell for help. Imagine staying stuck like that for months. That is a living nightmare.

Thankfully, Tsuna-san shakes his head. "It felt more like a very long lucid dream. I kinda knew about the stuff happening around me. But it wasn't like… constant or anything. I drifted in and out. Mostly, it was more like, you know, in the mornings? When you hear your alarm, and you wake a little just to hit snooze, then you go back to sleep. It was a lot like that."

"Is that an in-built mechanism of your capsule? So you aren't completely disoriented when you get out?" Midoriya slings out his question. Of course, he does. He wouldn't be Midoriya if he ignored an opportunity for more information.

"Hie!" Tsuna-san yelps. And there goes all his serenity, back to being a nervous wreck. "I - I - I don't know about any of that! I just - That is - You know! I really appreciated your company!"

Tsuna-san drags in a deep breath. "The uh - Inside the capsule - It can get real quiet inside the capsule. So, thank you for hanging out with me. And the whole sleepover thing... I mean…" 

He winces, scratching his cheek. "... That was kinda weird. But you know, I like weird. My whole family is weird, like extremely weird. And I felt right at home being surrounded by such noisy chaos. I um… You saved me and I don't say that lightly. Maybe it was just some random thing for you guys but it was still kind of you to do so. Thank you. Seriously."

Ah. There's the flustered, flutterby feeling, like a swarm of newly-hatched butterflies storming through her chest. Momo absently notes the intense heat flooding her cheeks. She must be blushing a great deal. 

"Well, of course!" Mina yells, thumping her chest. "We are training to be heroes. If we weren't kind, we wouldn't be doing this."

Minoru snorts. "Eh… I just wanna be popular."

Without even looking at him, Kirishima thumps Minoru on the head. "Not the time dude."

This time, Tsuna-san lets himself laugh. "I mean… You decided to put yourselves out there and help people. I don't know if I could do that. I'm um… I'm not brave enough for that sort of thing. So I don't know… You guys seem pretty admirable to me."

"Che, yeah. Fuck this." Bakugou rolls his eyes and walks away.

Sero waves a dismissive hand. "Nevermind him. That's really _kind_ of you to say. Thanks. And don't sell yourself short. Something tells me that could be a hero if you wanted to be."

"Oh. Well. I don't want to be."

All the air in the room gets sucked in by the class collectively gasping. Everyone had something to say about that. Poor Tsuna-san sinks into his seat, almost as if sliding down to the floor.

After a minute or two, Iida finally manages to hush the class again. Of course, it's not for very long.

Midoriya tilts his head. "So you don't want to be a hero?"

Tsuna-san wrings his hands. "Mmm… Maybe when I was younger… It's like… Who didn't like the idea of heroes? But now… I'd be happier living a quiet, out of the way life."

"Ambition is key in this field." Iida nods. "If you weren't ambitious, then you won't make it very far and that is assuming you last long enough to get your license."

"Yeah, I heard a lotta people drop out because of all the pressure," Kirishima adds.

"I figured as much." Tsuna-san hums in thought. "I mean… Surely, not everyone can be heroes or else there'd be nobody for the heroes to save. For every one of you guys, there must be fifty or a hundred like me." His eyes grow distant once more, his thoughts floating away like a lost balloon. "That seems kinda nice."

"Why?" Tsuyu asks.

Her question snaps Tsuna-san out of his strange, misty stupor. He grins that sheepish smile of his. "Ah, my bad. I uh… I got a little… Umm… Anyways!" He coughs lightly into a fist. "You have some questions for me. I can uh - I can probably answer a few."

Tsuyu opens her mouth, likely to repeat herself.

But Minoru speaks first. "That girl you have with you - Dokuro-chan, right? Is she your girlfriend?"

A wave of embarassment crashes through Momo and her classmates. They start shouting their protests, scolding Minoru for asking such an intimate question. And there's an undercurrent of frustration. Of all the things they want to learn about Tsuna-san, Minoru chooses that to focus on? They have such limited time as it is!

"She is not."

Silence drops on them like a tsunami. Their jaws click shut as all attention snaps back to Tsuna-san. Ah. Here was the boy from yesterday, the one with a striking presence. His overall appearance didn't change - still plain and skinny. But there was something about the way he lifted his chin, the way he stared at Minoru without blinking. When he spoke, everyone listened. Period. 

"But go on," Tsuna-san speaks softly, forcing everyone to concentrate on him. His smile is now a razor thin line cutting across his face. "Try something. Let's see what happens."

Minoru mutely shakes his head. 

Tsuna-san relaxes his expression and Momo finds herself drinking in a lungful of air. She exchanges looks with Oochako. Her friend jerks her shoulders up in a twitchy shrug.

"Does um... Does anyone wanna ask something else?" Tsuna-san drops his gaze again, wringing his hands. "I uh… yeah…"

Denki whistles. "Man, dude. You're pretty intense. Even if you weren't a hero, all the villains would still leave you alone."

Tsuna-san chuckles, prompting a ripple of laughter through Momo's classmates. "It's just something I picked up. My uh - tutor can get insanely scary."

"Sounds like one hell of a tutor if he can teach you that," Jiro murmurs under her breath.

Tsuna-san snorts. "Oh, you have no idea."

"Why do you need a tutor?" Momo asks. "Are you enrolled in an accelerated class?"

"You could say that. My… My _family_ is training me to take over the uh - the company."

"That's right! You're some kind of company heir!" Aoyama chimes in. "And for an Italian company too! _Trés bien_! Have you ever been to France?"

Just like that, the questions flood Tsuna-san once more. He seems more ready for them now, answering with an awkward grin. By the time Aizawa-sensei comes in, they managed to learn a lot. But somehow, it's not enough. There's something more - something related to the capsule, the family business, and just Tsuna-san in general. He seems troubled by something. At times, he even appears to be in pain.

And Momo never really considered herself to be kind. She isn't denying it, of course. She just tends to focus more on her other strengths such as her intelligence or her creativity. Kindness has been forgotten, more or less. Except now, she thinks, maybe kindness should be more important - more necessary than bravery or ambition. 

Momo carefully looks about the room. She catches Midoriya glancing at Tsuna-san repeatedly, biting his lip. Iida is more discreet but his stare often slides away from Aizawa-sensei. Todoroki is not being subtle at all, blatantly pinning his eyes on Tsuna-san. 

They all came here to be heroes. Is it because they're all kind, like Tsuna-san said? What does being kind mean? 

She eyes Tsuna-san. He's seated at a desk, like a fellow classmate. He faces forward, sitting up straight, looking more focused than just about everyone else. A random passerby would never have known him to be only a guest. He seems to fit right in, right down to the borrowed uniform he's wearing.

They could have been great friends, she thinks. Given another time, another place, they could have been somebody to each other and not mere acquaintances. 

And perhaps… Perhaps, it's that. To treat someone - anyone like a beloved friend, that is kindness. And if Momo is kind, then she'd help Tsuna-san somehow. 

She would be meddling in affairs largely unknown to her. Tsuna-san appears to be involved in something awfully complex. What if she only worsens the situation? And really, even if she treats him like a beloved friend, she still doesn't know him like a beloved friend. To interfere blindly, wouldn't she simply be satisfying her own sense of justice? Can that truly be considered an act of kindness?

Momo briefly squeezes her eyes shut, an ache building in the back of her head. Things were so much easier when she only worried about surviving a villain's attack. Heroes simply had to win the battle and save the day. Right?

Right?

* * *

Hayato sits with Tenth in the school's courtyard or front lawn or whatever. It's a rare moment of peace, just the two of them, alone together. Hibari is messing around in the city. He doesn't know where Chrome went. Turf-top and Baseball Idiot fucked off somewhere, getting all buddy-buddy with their fellow jocks. Byakuran is harassing some of the faculty. Yuni is back in the dorms, taking a nap. And that idiot cow went chasing after some random student. 

Tenth hasn't noticed yet, thankfully. Hayato wants to stretch out every second of their shared serenity. It is nice to just laze around, enjoying the sunshine. And sure, he would like to be in the library, reading up on the weird shit going on around here. But Tenth wanted to sunbathe or something about needing to warm up, so here they are. And if Tenth is here, then there is nowhere else Hayato wants to be.

"Say…" Tenth murmurs, sounding half-asleep. "What do you think about this world, Gokudera-kun?"

Hayato blinks, thinking over the question.

Oh Lord have mercy. Where to begin?

This whole world is insane! There is so much going on with quirks and talking animals and soda-sponsored superheroes. It all resembles a child's fever dream, mesmerizing and messy. 

Hayato can't even begin to theorize about the possible impact on the military industry, not to mention the various international conflicts. He hasn't seen a world map yet but he'd bet his bottom dollar that _their_ map looks nothing like the maps back at home. Entire countries must have been re-made anew with the onset of powerful beings randomly born within a region. 

So basically, he's been thinking about this way too much. And when Tenth told them to check out some classes, he happily sat in some lectures with the so-called support department. They were a bunch of loons because being a genius means being crazy. He can now confirm this to be a universal constant. Go figure.

But honestly, once Hayato got over the novelty of this world, he finds himself nursing a bit of a headache. He's only been here for thirteen-ish days and he could already identify a few glaring problems. Actually, he could realistically complete an entire thesis project based on the socio-economic commercialization of what should essentially be a free service. 

Listen. His world ain't shit. He will be the first to say so. The mafia is full of dumbasses and greedy sons of bitches. But damn, they know what they're about. They're self-aware enough to own their selfish pride. They draw their lines in the sand between what they hold dear and what they don't. No one is out there pretending to be a saint or claiming some kind of moral high ground. 

Here, everyone's all about being morally superior or some shit. There's so much posturing and parading and peacocking. Like who cares that you're a good person? What does that even matter if all you want is a medal for it? _Vaffanculo_.

But even after Hayato tells him all his thoughts about this world, Tenth just nods, sighs, and mutters something about "isn't that nice?" It's a bit concerning. And Hayato is kinda freaking out. 

Something hasn't been right with his Sky. Their bond feels thin, like the air at the top of Mount Everest. There's not enough to breathe in, not enough to live on. He gets all sorts of dizzy and desperate for more of Tenth even if he's right next to him. He wants nothing more than to fold himself around his Sky, becoming a second skin so they can never part.

That's not possible, of course. But Hayato wants it so bad. And he's not alone. All the other guardians feel the same way, even that damn Hibari. Something is happening to Tenth. They don't know what. So they sit around with thumbs jammed up their asses because they can't do much else. So yeah, Hayato is freaking the fuck out.

"Tenth, do you really like it here?"

"Well, not that much… Maybe…"

"Yeah, but I mean… Home will always be the best, right? I can't wait to head back. When you're feeling better, of course."

Tenth turns away from him. "... Of course."

Hayato wants to scream.

* * *

"Ne, ne you wanna see a cool trick?" Lambo-chan asks them.

By now, everyone knows about this little guy. He runs about everywhere, demanding candy from random teachers, picking fights with random students. He's not supposed to go anywhere without a chaperone. But like most bratty children, he never does what he's supposed to do. 

Ochaco shares a look with Deku-kun. He shrugs. She turns to Lambo-chan and nods. "Sure!"

"Okay. Gimme your phone."

Ah, maybe this isn't such a good idea. But Ochako gives it to him anyways. Lambo-chan takes hold of the phone with both hands then his eyes squeeze shut, frowning. He looks to be focusing really hard. Ochako is about to ask if he's okay, when green sparks shoot out from his horns, down his arms, and shocks her phone. She yelps. Oh no! Did he just fry her battery?

Before she could form an angry question, Lambo beams at her. "Watch this!"

The electrical current fizzes off the phone. The screen is on but not glitching in any way. That's a relief. But then, Lambo-chan raises up the phone - high as his arms would let him. And he smashes the phone - screen down - against the sidewalk.

Ochako feels her soul leave her body.

"Aaaaaah! You broke it! You broke it!"

"Did not!" Lambo replies with a huff.

"That phone was really expensive! I can't buy another one!" Ochako bends down and picks up the phone, inspecting it for any damage. 

There's none, not even a cracked screen or a scratch. If Ochako hadn't seen it herself, she'd say the phone was gently used but still in good condition.

"Wha - How?"

"Hehe! Aren't you impressed? I bet you're impressed! You're totally impressed!" Lambo-chan laughs. "I can make things strong, you see! Gyahahaha! I'm the best!"

Deku-kun immediately drops down, squatting at eye level with Lambo-chan. "By strong? What do you mean? How did you do that? You made her phone sturdy? Sturdier? How does that electrical current factor in?"

Lambo-chan steps back, startled by Deku-kun's sudden spew of questions. "I'm just awesome... That's all!"

"Aaaah! Lambo!" 

Looking up, Ochako sees Tsuna-san running up to them. He swiftly grabs hold of Lambo, pulling him close. 

"I'm so sorry! Has he been bothering you?" Tsuna-san asks them.

Ochako waves her hands. "Oh no! No! He was no trouble at all!"

Tsuna-san sighs before turning to Lambo, squirming in his hold. "Hey, c'mon! What have we told you about wandering off!"

"Dame-Tsuna! Ahou-Tsuna! Baka-Tsuna! You're boring! Everything is boring! I wanna play!"

Tsuna-san gives Ochako and Deku-kun an apologetic look. "He doesn't have his usual playmates, you see."

"Really, don't worry about it. He just gave us a demonstration of his quirk. It was just a bit... Shocking. Haha."

Deku-kun springs up to his feet. "What is his quirk, Tsuna-san? Lambo-chan just smashed her phone to the ground -"

"He did what?! Lambo!"

"Nothing happened!" Lambo-chan protests. "I used my Flame!"

"Flame? It looked more like electricity to me," Ochako comments.

"Ah! I suppose you could say that Flame is our word for Quirk. Lambo's... Ah, Gokudera is better at explaining. But basically, Lambo can make things tougher. If he uses his Flame on a... On a toothpick! Yeah, if he uses his flame on a toothpick, then it would be much much harder to break."

"That's amazing!" Deku-kun gasps, eyes going impossibly wide. Ochako knows that look and braces herself for his usual Quirk analysis. 

"With something like that, Lambo-chan can make anything a weapon! He'd be so versatile in combat. He could turn pillows into battering rams - shoelaces into tight rope! Does he need to be in contact with the item in order to reinforce it? Can he hand off a reinforced item to someone else? He could easily weaponize things for other -"

Tsuna-san looks bowled over, like he opened his closet and all his stuff just fell on him. Ochako takes pity on him.

"Tsuna-san, I hope we didn't interrupt you. Were you going somewhere?" Ochako gently cuts in as Deku-kun draws in a breath.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Tsuna-san! I didn't even think-"

Tsuna-san rubs the back of his neck. "No. It's fine. You're very intelligent, Midoriya-san. Gokudera would love to pick your brain, sometime."

"Ah? Gokudera?"

"Octopus head!" Lambo-chan helpfully adds. "He's always wearing dumb rings and belts that don't even hold up his pants!"

Ochako snorts loudly at that. Oh yes. Him. The Bakugo-copy or maybe she shouldn't say copy. He certainly acts very similar.

Deku-kun shifts nervously. "Eh? Him?"

Tsuna-san smiles gently. "He is very loud. But he doesn't harm anyone unless they pick a fight with him. I'm sure he'd value your insight. You have things worth listening to, after all."

Deku-kun flushes a bright red. Ochako studies Tsuna-san. She's been noticing this more and more. Tsuna-san is soft-spoken and generally anxious, clumsy and prone to zoning out. But he has such a deft touch with people. He can easily make them feel at ease or valued, like there's a welcoming aura constantly around him. Warm, she thinks. He's just a very warm person.

* * *

Hours later, classes are finally over. Tsuna and his friends are wandering about the school grounds, idly taking note of the students around them. It's very strange, this idea of a school for would-be heroes. And Tsuna has seen some pretty strange things. But this, to quote his little brother, this is ranked pretty high up in his assessment of weird and strange and fantastical. It's like something out of his manga. But then, he could say the same for his whole life.

Up ahead, he notices a group of familiar faces. Oh, it's class 1-A. For such a huge school, they strangely manage to keep meeting each other. Thankfully, his hyper intuition didn't find anything suspicious about that. Some coincidences are just coincidences, with no nefarious plot at work.

"Would you like to play football with us?" A tall, spectacled boy asks them. He is the Class President, if Tsuna remembers correctly. 

"It would provide an excellent bonding opportunity between us. And as your hosts, we should strive to make you feel welcome," the Class President continues.

"That sounds like fun!" Yamamoto agrees. "I'd love to play!"

"Me too! Me too! I wanna play too!" Lambo screeches, tugging at his hand.

The Class President hesitates here. 

But his friend, a red haired boy, grins gently. "That's very manly of you, kiddo! Whaddya say, Prez? Think we can handle him?"

"Well, yes! But he's..."

"Don't underestimate him just 'cuz he's little," Gokudera huffs.

Wow. That was a compliment. Gokudera just complimented Lambo. Should Tsuna be concerned?

"And he'll throw a tantrum if he doesn't get to play. Just let him do it."

And there it is. Tsuna snorts. It had been too good to be true.

"Let me play! Let me plaaaaay!" Lambo yells out.

"Alright then," the Class President nods. "We can accommodate him."

"Naisu!" A blond-black haired boy cheers. "Let's go before someone claims the field."

The teams get set up. It's five vs. five. His team is made up of him, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Ryohei, and Lambo. The other team has… Man, he is terrible with names. And there's so many of them. He ends up identifying them via hair color and odd speech tic. There's the mumbling green, the manly red, the shouty blond, the laid-back blond-black, and of course, the Class President.

Other students, likely classmates, take their seats on the bleachers. Byakuran and Chrome head there. With a sizeable audience, it almost feels like a real game. Sweat starts to bead on his brow. He swallows loudly. He's never been too good under intense scrutiny - or not even intense, just scrutiny in general. 

For the first - oh Tsuna wants to say - five minutes, everything goes fine. Ha. Who is he kidding? He's never been good at sports. It didn't take five minutes - maybe three at the most - for him to mess up. First, he trips on his feet. Second, he trips someone else with his feet. Third, he trips on the ball, catches himself, only to run into a goal post. He falls to the grass and rubs his abused nose. He feels everyone's eyes on him. Aaaaah. That was so bad. That was actually awful.

"It's actually impressive how completely and utterly hopeless you are," Byakuran comments, loudly and cheerfully.

"Shut up! He's just tired! He hasn't fully recovered yet!" Gokudera jumps to his defense, as usual.

Tsuna rubs the back of his head. He eyes the other team. The shouty blond clicks his tongue and looks at him like Tsuna's gum stuck to his shoe. His teammates are more reserved in their judgements - less disgusted and more pitiful. 

"Are you injured, Sawada-san?" The one with green hair approaches him. 

Tsuna waves him off. "It's fine. I'm okay. But I think I better sit this one out."

"Tenth!" Gokudera cries, aghast.

"You sure, Tsuna?" Yamamoto asks.

Tsuna nods. "Byakuran can take my place. Since he seems to know his stuff."

"I know a lot of stuff," Byakuran agrees. "I'm pretty amazing."

The shouty blond snorts loudly. "Oh yeah? How about we make this interesting then? Let's play using our quirks."

"Bakugo! That's highly ill-advised! There's a child present!"

"And? He can use his quirk too."

"Are we even allowed?" The spiky-red one asks.

"Sure. We're on school grounds. We can call it extra training or some shit."

"That's not strictly-" The Class President begins before Byakuran cuts him off with a loud clap.

"How fun!" And just like that, he manifests a pair of white wings. "Don't worry! If you get into trouble, just blame us! After all, we're the strange foreigners who don't understand your rules!"

"That's very dishonest!" The Class President replies, very alarmed.

"Or maaaaybe, you know it's futile. You're outmatched in every possible way," Byakuran says with a smirk.

"Ooooh! Ooooh! You gonna take that lying down, Class Prez?" Some other student yells out from the sidelines.

"C'mon, Iida-kun! Show them what you're made of!" Another adds on.

The Class President pauses, lips pressed thin. 

"Plus Ultra!" Someone cheers.

Iida-san huffs, looking faintly amused. "Oh... Very well... Game on!"

The class cheers loudly.

"I'm gonna need a sub in," Gokudera announces. "If the Tenth isn't playing-"

"Don't you dare!" Tsuna cuts in.

"Tenth!"

"It's really okay, Gokudera. I'll be fine. Go have fun."

"I can look after Boss." Chrome adds.

Tsuna glances at her. "Eh? Are you sure?"

Chrome smiles, bemused. "I'm not exactly a sports player."

"Ah, I guess not, huh?" Tsuna faces Gokudera. "See? Chrome will be here. I'm in good hands. She's one of my Guardians, after all."

Gokudera still seems very unsure. His brow knits together like it's preparing a sweater for the winter. "But-"

Tsuna breaks out his secret weapon. "Hayato. Please. Have some fun. For me." He even throws in his puppy eyes for that added umph. Bless Kyoko-chan for teaching him that neat trick.

Gokudera basically melts. "Right, of course." Then he squares his shoulders. "I'll score a victory in your honor!"

"We won't let you win that easy!" The Class President announces, no trace of reluctance left in him.

"You haven't even seen what we can do!" The blond-black haired boy adds. "And we've got hero training! What do you have?"

"Trauma," Gokudera replies shortly.

"Hie! You can't say that!" Tsuna splutters. 

Yamamoto is laughing so hard - he can no longer stand up straight.

"We have EXTREME fighting spirit," Big Brother adds. 

The other team trades wary looks. Oh great. They're weirded out now. Well, it was bound to happen at some point, Tsuna supposes. His family couldn't pass for normal if their lives depended on it. He sighs.

The spiky-red haired boy shrugs and grins at them. "That's incredibly manly! Alright! Let's do this!"

This effectively energizes his classmates. There's more shouts of "Plus Ultra". Any sign of uncertainty or discomfort vanishes without a trace. Another student blows a whistle. The opposing teams take their places. 

"Alright, kero!" The frog girl appears to be their referee. "Quirk use is allowed, but let's keep this friendly! Nothing to hurt anybody or cause excessive property damage. I'm looking at you, Bakugou, kero."

"Piss off!"

"I'd name names but I'd end up naming my whole team," Tsuna chuckles.

"Tenth..." Gokudera pouts.

"On the count of 3. 1, 2 -PWEEEEET!" 

Sagging in his seat, Tsuna watches with an absent-minded joy. He looks over at Chrome and smiles at her. She smiles back and gently leans against him. All is well in the world.

The game gets intense. With all their special abilities - or quirks on display, the other team gets scary. The Class President just zooms around. The green one kicks so hard. The red one can block even the toughest shots. The shouty blond explodes so enough said. The blond-black haired boy keeps zapping anyone that comes close.

But his family aren't slouches. The next time the electric boy tries his trick, Lambo steps up and absorbs the electricity like he's facing a soothing summer breeze. Big Brother manages to match the green one's empowered kicks. When Iida-san zooms by, Yamamoto slows him down in his usual calming manner. Byakuran literally flies circles around the shouty blond, just to keep him occupied. Gokudera doesn't use his flames per se, merely outsmarts the red one with excellent maneuvering. That makes sense since his primary Flame isn't useful in a football match. 

Then the score ties. They agree that the next point wins. And things really heat up. The shouty blond blasts a shot. In an attempt to block it, Lambo rushes at the ball only for the ball to smack him hard in the stomach. He curls up on the ground, appearing injured. The other team immediately cry out with concern - and some spectators fuss over as well. His family doesn't react so much, save for keeping a more watchful eye on Lambo. Tsuna notices the class noticing their apparent non-reaction.

"Hold. It. In," he hears Lambo hiss out. The boy gets back on his feet, before anyone could approach and check on him. With his shoulders squared, electricity crackles around his horns. All that likely came from the zappy boy. It was really such a bad match up, that one. Lambo lets out a war cry and kicks the ball hard - Lightning flames fortifying it and allowing him to pump his kick full of electricity without damaging the ball.

The other team clearly isn't expecting it. And no one had called time out - too flustered over Lambo, unlike his family, standing around patiently and so, capitalizing on the literal shock. Big Brother snags the ball and charges down the field. The shouty blond is the first to react. He attempts to block Big Brother's way but Big Brother passes it to the awaiting Yamamoto. 

The green one charges in and Yamamoto swiftly softens the guy's kick and easily regains control of the ball. The red one steps into his path but Byakuran swoops in to block him from interfering. Yamamoto passes it to Gokudera. The blond-black haired one moves to zap him but Gokudera blazes bright red, countering the attack, then kicks the ball back to Yamamoto. 

Iida-san dashes to defend the goal, making sure to stay away from Yamamoto's area of effect. But Yamamoto simply grins at him - the kind of grin that all but yells "Psyche!". Kicking up, straight up into the sky, Yamamoto crosses to Byakuran and from his high angle, Byakuran shoots. Expecting a ground level shot, Iida-san leaps a half-second too late and the ball sinks into the net.

* * *

Izuku has… So... Many… Questions. They finally got to see all the quirks of their guests. And wow! These guys sure have some impressive quirks. 

Yamamoto-san has something like an inhibitor field. Sasagawa-san has an incredible strength enhancer. Byakuran-san sprouted wings and Gokudera-san burst into flames - or that's how Izuku saw it. Now, Gokudera-san looks perfectly alright, no longer on fire and without a singe mark on him. But when he first activated his quirk, Izuku tripped over his feet and almost ate dirt - it had been that shocking. 

Oh, he knows about the rumors concerning Gokudera-san. Almost everyone thinks of him as the second coming of Kacchan. But further investigation informed Izuku that Gokudera-san doesn't use his quirk to make explosions. Somehow, their guest managed to sneak in a large cache of dynamite - that's right, _dynamite_ \- which he freely uses to settle all his arguments. 

Izuku has only heard of dynamite from comics and history books and such. He's never even seen one up close and definitely not one in use. Of course, more importantly, this usage of outdated explosives only fueled Izuku's curiousity. Nowadays, relying on an external, non-quirk related weapon is hardly common. But Gokudera-san does precisely that. Why??

At first, Izuku suspected that Gokudera-san didn't have a very strong quirk. It neatly explains his use of dynamite. But now, after seeing that spontaneous combustion, Izuku wonders if his quirk was too dangerous for casual or repeated use. Except, Gokudera-san doesn't look hurt at all and surely, if he had such a risky quirk, he wouldn't use it in friendly game of football. Right? 

Right??

Well, how did his quirk function precisely? Izuku just saw a blaze of red. And Kaminari's attack was negated. No, not negated exactly. It was redirected. In that moment, Gokudera's quirk behaved like regular fire, capable of serving as a conduit for electricity. But if it was a purely elemental quirk, how did Gokudera not suffer any damage himself from the whole "setting himself ablaze"? 

"Speak up. You're muttering too fast. I caught like a third of that. Something about danger?" 

"Well, I mean, Gokudera-san simply doesn't use his quirk often. So I was just thinking that maybe-" Izuku's jaw clicks shut. He blinks, lifting his gaze. 

Everyone has walked off the field. They're all clustered by the bleachers, likely talking about the game. But Izuku had lingered behind, too lost in his thoughts to properly pay attention. So, he didn't notice that he wasn't all by himself.

Gokudera-san stands before him, arms crossed and frowning. 

Izuku shrieks. "AH! I didn't mean to - That is - I'm only speculating on - Not like, you know-" He breathes in deeply and bows. "I deeply apologize. I meant no offense."

He hears a snort. "Nah. From what I heard, you got some pretty interesting thoughts knocking around that head. I asked you to speak up not shut up."

Again, Izuku blinks, straightening up. He tilts his head, pinching his brow. From everything he's heard about Gokudera-san, especially considering his similarities to Kacchan, Izuku never expected such upfront interest from him, and expressed in a largely calm manner! No shouting, no swear words, no shouting out swears. It's downright polite!

"You… You wanna hear about my thoughts?"

Gokudera-san shrugs. "The Tenth said that you got interesting stuff to say. You like quirk analysis right? I've been meaning to pick someone's brain about that sort of thing. And you seem pretty interested in mines."

Izuku slaps a hand over his mouth to stifle a sudden squeal of excitement. 

"I'll take that as a yes."

Izuku pumps both his fists. "I. Have. So. Many. Questions."

Gokudera-san rubs the back of his head. "Keep in mind… There's a lot of classified info that I'm not allowed to tell you."

"But you will tell me what you can?"

"Only if _you_ tell _me_ what _you_ know."

"Oh, it's a deal!"

They shake on it.

"When would you like to start?" Izuku blurts out.

Gokudera-san hums in thought. "Now-ish? We're planning to leave soon."

"O-Oh… Yeah. You guys have been here for awhile now."

"13 days, 7 hours, 29 minutes and 3 - 4 seconds. Honestly, I'd like to get back home now. But it's up to Tenth."

"By Tenth, you mean Tsuna-san, right?" 

Izuku glances over, finding Tsuna-san still seated in the bleachers. He's talking and laughing at the exaggerated play-by-play given by Lambo-chan. From the looks of it, Kirishima is adding his own color commentary. Tsuna-san nods along, appearing perfectly at home.

"He seems better. He stopped by today to thank us. You know, I get the feeling that he really likes it here."

"You and me both," Gokudera-san mutters.

Izuku tilts his head. "Is there any harm in staying just a bit longer? Cross-continental flights are exhausting, from what I heard. If Tsuna-san isn't ready…"

"What? You think I'm some kinda idiot?! Of course, I - We've taken that into account!"

Izuku flinches, taking a step back. Ah. Gokudera-san really does resemble Kacchan. And here, Izuku had started to doubt the comparison. But no. It's very much spot on.

"I really meant nothing by it," he offers meekly. "I'm-"

"-sticking your nose in other people's business. Yeah, yeah. How very heroic."

Izuku frowns. "Um, huh?"

"I don't know why… But Tenth just seems fascinated by this whole superhero deal. A fat load of… Whatever. Just mind your own business."

Gritting his teeth, Izuku swallows back the heat swelling between his ribs. "Hard to believe that."

"Ha? Believe what?"

"Tsuna-san doesn't seem like the hero type."

"Excuse you, freckles! Your heroes could learn from the Tenth. He's noble and selfless and kind! He'd school all of you on saving the day!"

"Okay, yeah! You're still wrong about him being a hero!"

"Like you know him better than me?"

"No, of course not! But he told us that he didn't want to be a hero. Tsuna-san only wants a peaceful, anonymous life. He can't be something that he doesn't want to be. But surely _you_ would know that, wouldn't you?"

Izuku could have slapped Gokudera-san with a rotting fish and it would have horrified him less. Oh man, he didn't mean to say that. Except that he did. Because Gokudera-san has no right to be so snide about heroes. But then, Izuku had no right to be so snide right back. And why did he say that? Aloud?! To Gokudera's face?!?!

"... Did he tell you that?" Gokudera murmurs, so quietly and so unlike hot-headed attitude from earlier.

Somehow, this is more damning than if he had exploded and yelled at him outright.

Izuku looks away, avoiding Gokudera's gaze. He briefly catches a flash of green disappearing in a far corner of the field. It almost looked like the tip of a ponytail. Someone leaving? 

Izuku shakes his head. Focus. Clearing his throat, he carefully gives his answer.

"Not… Not in those exact words, but pretty much. Yeah. We - my class, I mean - it was a surprise for us."

Gokudera-san stays silent. 

When the seconds pass with no reply, Izuku turns to face Gokudera-san. He finds him staring at Tsuna-san, biting his lip. There is something twisted in his expression, pulling at his brows and the corners of his mouth. It's something like sorrow and fury but darker, more intense. It looks a lot like grief.

"Gokudera-san?"

"You know what? Forget about the whole quirk analysis thing. I got better other stuff to do."

Gokudera-san starts walking away. And Izuku doesn't bother to say another word. It's almost amazing how badly that ended, especially since things started off so well.

* * *

"I can't convince him."

"Well, he did spend six months over there. He would get attached to the place."

"No, not the place - the _idea_ of the place. He could have landed anywhere and it would have yielded the same result."

"Which is?"

"He doesn't want to come back."

"But he's still wearing the ring?"

"Only because we told him that it can keep the _cold_ away. And to be fair, it is doing precisely that."

"Among other things..."

"Yes."

Her associate tips his head forward. "It may be difficult but I have full confidence in your negotiation skills. He'll come around."

"No. I don't think so." She clutches the communicator till her knuckles ached white.

The communicator was crafted by Kawahira himself, specifically for the purpose of discreet interdimensional communication. It was created using a comibination of Night Flames, Vongola ore, and some other secret component. Kawahira only made one and gifted it to her, for emergency use only. Somehow, he knew this would happen. They all did.

"I'm afraid... I'm afraid that... My negotiation skills will no longer suffice."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm going to need backup. He won't... He won't listen. And we already know... We know that he won't come quietly. Your particular brand of persuasion would work better than mines."

There's silence. Her associate peers at her through half-lidded eyes. For a drawn out second, she could only hear the fearful fluttering of her heart.

Then finally, he speaks again. "Are you sure about this, Lady Giglio Nero?"

Yuni swallows a mouthful of bitter spit. "Yes. It must be done. He needs a wake up call."

* * *

A couple of friends sit together, eating lunch at Yuuei's cafeteria. They look like any other hero-wannabe students attending the school. Except, they aren't students, they don't aim to be heroes, and they can't really be called 'friends', at least not right now. Friends don't plot against each other. Tsuna-kun taught Byakuran that. But here's Yuni, doing precisely that.

He eyes the girl before him, wrinkling his nose. He pops another spoonful of pudding into his mouth. Unfortunate, really. Of course, he shouldn't expect high quality pudding to come from a Japanese public school. Bad cafeteria lunches are another universal constant, after all. 

Still, hope is a thing with feathers. Like him - he also has feathers. But that's about the only thing they have in common. He's certainly not feeling very hopeful at the moment.

"Sooooo," he croons, waving about his spit-slick spoon. "We missed you at the game yesterday."

"From what I hear, it was certainly something. I'm sorry to have missed it." Yuni smiles, showing off her dimples.

She is such a cute girl, with her pink cheeks and her button nose. So pleasant, so cheerful, it's hard to believe that she's the Don of an ancient Mafia family, with ancestors spilling enough blood to fill a backyard pool. Surely not Yuni-chan, always ready with a kind word or a helpful hand - such a girl wouldn't have a mean bone in her body.

Cute girls get away with the most cruelty. 

"Are you sorry?" 

"Why wouldn't I be? It was a badly timed nap. Oh I hadn't meant to nod off but when I got back to my room, well… The bed just looked too inviting. And honestly, we have been working hard, smoothing over relations between ourselves and the faculty. It's no easy task."

"Nope." Byakuran chirps, idly stirring around his leftover pudding. He leaves his reply hanging in the air for a good minute. 

Yuni keeps her lips curved in a perfect cupid's bow. But she stares straight at him, watching with eyes as smooth and flat as a freshly frozen lake. Byakuran slides another spoonful of pudding into his mouth. 

The seconds crawl past. 

Yuni glances away, reaching for her forgotten drink. She raises the bottle to her mouth. Byakuran swallows his bite of pudding. 

"Say. Did your grandmother smile that same smile when she led the Arcobaleno to their doom?"

Yuni didn't spit out her water, or anything funny like that. No. Unlike either himself or Tsuna-kun, she grew up knowing precisely who she was meant to be. One third of their sacred Trinisette, the last in a line of Great Skies, she acts with enough refinement to put royalty to shame. So no spit-takes from her, the killjoy.

Really, she hardly reacts beyond lightly placing her bottle down.

"She might have," Yuni tells him, ever so politely. "I fail to see how that matters here."

"Just saying, you know." Byakuran shrugs, grinning with a mouthful of teeth. 

He may have learned his role at the last minute. But he's a quick study. And the Mare bearers are always meant to be the wild cards. If he pulls plans out his ass, that's expected of him. 

"Yes. And you're saying?"

"Lots of things going on behind that pre-tty, little smile of yours. I just want a hint."

Her smile softens around the edges, no longer bent up. She lowers her gaze to the table. And it's the first sign of sorrow that Byakuran has seen from her since this whole venture started. 

He frowns. To express that so openly… things must be more grave than he first thought.

"Yuni, what are you -"

"HELP!!!"

The shout erupts over the cafeteria chatter. Every head turns to the door. Byakuran doesn't look away from Yuni. But she clearly sees whoever's causing the fuss. She jumps to her feet.

"What? What happened?"

Something rams into his back, small hands wrapping around his shoulders. And oh lord! Snot is smearing across his dry-clean only jacket. He reaches back and plucks whatever decided to use him as a handkerchief. Lambo's teary eyes greet him as he hoists the boy up.

"Dame-Tsuna won't wake up!" The boy yells, a string of snot flailing about. 

Byakuran tosses him to the floor with a firm grimace. 

"Make Dame-Tsuna wake up!" Clingy and hardy like all lightnings, Lambo doesn't seem winded by a somewhat rough landing and immediately scrambles to grab hold of Byakuran's leg.

He turns to Yuni, looking for help. She's always been better with children. But Yuni keeps her eyes on something behind him.

"What's wrong with Tsuna-kun?"

"He's cold," came the gruff, nicotine-worn voice of the Vongola Storm guardian. "And he's getting colder. Please. They already took him to the infirmary."

Byakuran rolls his eyes. "Their nurse can't help him."

"Of course we know that! We just couldn't stop them. They were freaking out, and we were freaking out. So he's in the infirmary. I'm just telling _you_ so _you_ know exactly where to go."

There's a deep, shuddering breath.

"You can help him, right? I figured… You have to be the only ones who can."

Byakuran and Yuni lock eyes with each other. Together, they let their flames pulse out, a simple flare like the Dying Will version of a wave hello. Normally, Tsuna-kun would wave back, a shy spark - tiny but bright. Now, they barely get a feeble glow.

Byakuran curls his hands into fists. He had been so busy playing interrogator that he hadn't noticed Tsuna-kun growing weaker. But in his defense, Tsuna-kun's flame has been muted ever since they first found him. It's been flickering and wavering and stuttering and other bad -ings. That's the reason for their continued stopover here. A return trip could endanger Tsuna-kun further, yes. But more than that, they can't do a return trip without Tsuna, period.

The expansive multi-verse contains unimaginable depth. They could easily get lost in the abyss between realities. But thanks to Vongola's power over vertical time, the current wielders can pinpoint the past wielders, homing in across all of existence. Tsuna is quite literally their compass directing them home.

But with Tsuna so weak, there was no way to push him through the process of interdimensional travel. They were effectively stranded. That was manageable. They can handle an extended layover. They can't handle whatever this is.

Yuni nods at Byakuran. He nods back. Leaping up, his wings burst out of his back as Yuni falls forward into his hold. He manages to somehow kick the Lightning boy off before spinning around and taking flight. With Yuni securely in his arms, he makes a few physics-defying turns as he zooms for the infirmary.

There, a dismal sight greets them. The nurse is bent over Tsuna-kun, doing chest compressions. All the other Vongola guardians - yes, _all_ of them - are in the room. Takeshi-kun and Chrome-chan crowd the bed. The loud Sun guardian is currently quiet, pacing back and forth with a clenched jaw. Kyouya-kun is seated on the windowsill, with a leg hanging outside, but his other leg firmly planted inside.

The nurse is starting to run out of breath.

"Excuse me, please move out of the way," Yuni tells her.

She unhooks herself from him and steps over to Tsuna-kun. The nurse lets out an incredulous protest. Something something medical professional something something. Byakuran climbs onto the bed and settles Tsuna-kun on his lap. 

Takeshi-kun does the unenviable job of placating that poor nurse. And that's the last Byakuran notes before completely ignoring her. He places a hand on Tsuna's brow. Cold. Just like Hayato-kun said. Yuni has seated herself across from him, leaning forward to rest an ear on Tsuna's chest. Her gasp tells him everything he needs to know.

"His Will… It's fading."

"Is that… Is that when..." Chrome-chan bites her lip, hands wringing around her trident. "Define fading?"

Yuni straightens up. "Once someone activates their Dying Will, their life becomes intimately tied to their Flame. Ergo, if their Flame fades, they end up dying. There's never been a conclusive explanation. According to various studies, the person's body just ceases to function, full stop. They could be the picture of perfect health and then drop dead after losing their… Well, it is essentially their Will to live."

"That's the strange thing," Byakuran adds. "Having a Dying Will is proof of your excessive desire to survive. You don't just wake up one morning and decide to die that day. You become hardwired to push on regardless of whatever's in your way. It's supposed to be a deterrent against…" 

"Melancholy? Doubt? Resignation?" Kyouya-kun finishes for him, twirling his tonfa. "The little animal displays these weaknesses on a nearly daily basis. Yet he still bares his fangs as need be. What changed?"

"He was Sealed," Hayato answers, walking in. Lambo hangs limp in his arms, still crying but quietly.

Byakuran blinks. His mind connects the pieces together at a rapid fire rate.

"Oh, of course!" He looks over at Yuni and nods. "His psyche has been largely affected by the inability to access most of his willpower. And sure, when Reborn broke the Seal, Tsuna-kun got better. But then-"

Yuni gasps. "He froze himself!"

"When locked in the ice, the Zero Point Breakthrough essentially… breaks someone's Dying Will. So they can't just bust out. And of course, the ice leaves adverse effects. But there hasn't exactly been research on this. Before Tsuna started using it, Zero-Point Breakthrough was almost lost to time. Our only example is Xanxus and pfft! Sure, he was traumatically scarred but he was also on fire! Wouldn't you say so?"

"Yeah. That bastard didn't look anywhere close to dying. Heaven forbid him from doing us any favors," Hayato-kun snorts. "Essentially, Tenth is reacting much worse than he did. Did I get that right?"

Yuni clears her throat. "Yes. Because... It was one thing to be frozen by someone else. It's another to freeze by your own hand. It's like - It's like - Oh! I can't even imagine what it's like!"

"It's the difference between someone telling you to kill yourself and you saying the same thing, alone, in your head." Takeshi-kun speaks with a serenity befitting a Rain. It's very creepy considering what he's saying. His tired smile just makes the whole thing worse.

Yuni's mouth pinches in the corners. "Yes. I do believe that it's something like that."

Byakuran sighs. "So that means Tsuna-kun forced his psyche or some such to eradicate his Will to live, consequently snuffing out his Flame."

"Make no mistake. His flame could have endured all that. He could have recovered just fine. Except by freezing himself, he compounded the damage left by the Seal," Yuni squeezes her eyes shut. "He became more vulnerable to thoughts of surrender."

Byakuran drops his gaze, staring at Tsuna-kun. His fellow Sky wears a peacefully sleeping face, in complete contrast to the distress around him. There is not a hint of regret to be found in his expression. Byakuran wants nothing more than to shake him stupid. Who knows? Maybe that will solve all their problems.

"That's a great explanation. Let's assume that I understood every word of it," the nurse spits out sharply. "Your friend is still in danger. What can you do about that?"

Byakuran rubs a hand down Tsuna's arm. It won't warm him up, he knows. He keeps on doing it.

"Well… Uncle Reborn cracked the Seal slowly over time through a Dying Will bullet. He was effectively kickstarting Tsuna-kun's flame, like igniting the engine of a car." Yuni bites her lip.

"Fan-fucking-tastic!" Hayato-kun snarls. "Except we don't have a Dying Will bullet!"

"We do."

The entire room freezes the way photos capture a moment in time. Chrome-chan is half-bent over Tsuna-kun, studying him closely. Takeshi-kun has his hands on the nurse's shoulders, likely holding her back. Hayato-kun's mouth hangs open, preparing for enough curses to educate a sailor. Kyouya-kun gets caught mid-blink and Yuni-chan has stopped breathing. Byakuran can't even begin to guess the look on his face right now.

Then together, as if rehearsed, their heads snap towards Ryohei-kun, still pacing back and forth.

"We do?" Takeshi-kun echoes. 

"I have one." Ryohei-kun nods briskly. "If we're gonna do this, we have to do this now." 

"Wait, wait, wait-" Hayato-kun wheezes, finding his voice.

"Can't wait. Sawada is dying, Octopus-head. We gotta go."

Ryohei-kun marches over to the window.

Kyouya-kun makes a grumpy sort of huffing noise. He swings his leg over the windowsill so both hang outside. Then he leaps down to the ground. Ryohei-kun follows him after.

"Wait! Just wait a moment!"

Byakuran shares a look with Yuni. Her lips press tight together, a hard fold between her brow. She makes no argument against this turn of events, and that's good enough for him. He snakes his arms around Tsuna's legs and shoulders, carrying him like a fairy tale princess.

"Byakuran, hold on! Don't manhandle Tenth like that!"

"Yes, sit back down, young man! I don't quite like the sound of this. What do you mean by bullet? Surely, you don't mean the sort that gets fired from a -"

The nurse's voice fades away as Byakuran jumps out the window. He briefly feels a hand clipping his collar, likely an attempt to haul him back. But they're too late, whoever that was. He easily joins Ryohei-kun and Kyouya-kun on the ground outside.

"How should we do this?" Byakuran shifts Tsuna-kun into a more comfortable position.

Ryohei-kun pulls out a ring box. It opens with a press of his Flame-lit finger. Huh. This must be a new design. 

"I just have to shoot him,right?" 

After a brilliant yellow burst, a glock appears in Ryohei-kun's hand. It's white all over except for a streak of gold down the barrel. 

"Do you even know how to shoot a gun?" Hayato-kun yells, landing behind Byakuran. "Have you ever shot a gun before?"

"Nope. I hate guns. So impersonal," Ryohei-kun replies with a snort. "If I'm gonna hurt someone, then it's gonna be up close and not 50 meters away from a sniper's perch."

"Haha, that's so like you, senpai." Takeshi-kun has joined them, his feet lightly hitting the dirt.

"Aren't you supposed to be handling the old nag?" Hayato-kun glares at Takeshi-kun.

"Shuzenji-san went to get reinforcements." Takeshi-kun pins his eyes on Byakuran. "So if you're gonna do this, do it now before they do something stupid like separate us."

"Agreed," Yuni adds, climbing out. 

Chrome-chan chooses to lurk by the window, with Lambo curled against her chest. She may be staying inside but she isn't idle in the least. Byakuran notes the illusionary planks nailed to the clinic's door.

"I just don't understand!" Hayato-kun screeches. Wow, he sure has a set of lungs on him. "How did you get a hold of a Dying Will bullet?"

"Reborn gave it to me, obviously."

"But why you? Why not Yuni or me or even Baseball Idiot?"

"Listen, does that really matter? As long as Tsuna gets saved, it's not important who pulls the trigger!"

"It's important to me! What if you fuck this up? You could kill him! Let me do it!"

"No." 

Yuni pushes Hayato away from Ryohei. She may be small but when she plants her feet, no high tide or heavy weather could move her. Except Hayato has the sense of a desperate madman, so he tries to reach around her. She slaps his hands away.

"Stop that. It has to be Sasagawa-kun. Sun Flames have an Activation ability, remember? Naturally, Tsuna-kun's Sun Guardian is our best bet at saving him!"

Byakuran walks away from Ryohei-kun, putting a nice ten paces of distance between them. Then he shifts around until he holds Tsuna-kun in front of him, like some kind of floppy meat shield. 

Hayato-kun growls, the sound of a cornered animal. " _Dio merda,_ did Reborn-san give you some training? Or at least some instructions?!"

There's a symphony of clicks as Ryohei double checks the gun's ammo. He's a pretty thick guy, both physically and mentally. But Byakuran watches him prep the glock and he must admit that those heavily scarred fists can move with enough grace to make a ballerina weep. 

"Yes," Ryohei-kun answers, short and sharp. He slides the magazine into place and lifts his gaze, staring directly at Byakuran. 

He nods back and pulls Tsuna up higher, murmuring into his ear. "You better have regrets. Or you are going to die here."

Briefly, Byakuran swears that Tsuna's eyes slid slightly open.

Hayato-kun lets out a scream, a noise of senseless fury. He looks ready to strangle his fellow guardian. "Well?! What did Reborn say?!?"

Ryohei aims the gun. "Have faith."

Hayato's jaw snaps shut. Ryohei pulls the trigger. There's a crisp and echoing bang.

Adrenaline overloads Byakuran's veins. He becomes keenly aware of the bird-like bones in Tsuna's shoulders, right under his palms. He notes how pale Tsuna is, the once suntanned skin fading into gray. He counts the number of breaths Tsuna takes, not enough - not nearly enough. He watches the bullet sail through the air, heading right between Tsuna's shut eyes.

The impact throws Tsuna's head back, knocking it against Byakuran's chin. He staggers back but never lets go. 

One second. 

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Byakuran grits his teeth, leaning down to hiss into Tsuna's ear.

"Are you going to die here, Tsuna-kun? In front of all your friends and family. How cruel. You never cared about any of them, huh? All you wanted was _your_ way out. You didn't change a bit. Such a selfish, puny brat."

Thirty seconds.

Between Tsuna's eyes, the bullet hole begins to bleed. Byakuran sucks in a stinging lungful of air.

Then, like an earthquake - with no build up, no warning, just sudden catastrophic destruction, Tsuna jerks awake. Fire explodes from his brow and his skin lights up with a yellow-orange glow. Touching him burns Byakuran's hands and he lets go with a pained yelp. 

Tsuna staggers forward, swaying from side to side, before finally finding his feet. He stands up straight and lifts his chin, releasing a shout twice the size of his body. 

" **RAAAAAAAAAAA**!" 

"Tenth!" Hayato-kun yells back. 

"Tsuna, you're okay!" Takeshi-kun cheers.

But Takeshi-kun is wrong. Byakuran can feel it. And so does Yuni. She takes a step back, away from Tsuna. His flames spread wide and rage white-hot, the unholy fusion of an untamed forest fire and a metal-melting furnace fire. 

Tsuna has always been powerful, carrying a force of nature locked within his ribs. But he's never unleashed so much Flame before, not during his fight with Daemon Spade, not during his fight with Bermuda. He's radiating enough heat that Byakuran can feel his skin peeling back and curling black. Their now unbalanced trinity sends out a ringing screech, causing an ache to bloom behind his eyes.

"Um... Hang on. Has Tsuna always been this hot? Not like that. I mean, literally."

"What's happening?"

"But he's fine, right? He's awake and everything!"

"Why is he acting like that?"

"Tsuna-kun! Calm down! You have to calm down!" 

At the sound of Yuni's voice, Tsuna's head whips around, his wide-open gaze finding her. He bares his teeth in a drooling snarl, crouching forward like a lion about to leap. Byakuran prepares to launch himself between them, White Applause at the ready. But Tsuna just keeps staring at Yuni and only Yuni. 

"Leave. Me. ALONE!!!" He roars before lunging away. He doesn't attack like Byakuran expected. No, he flies off, soaring up and up and up, getting further away with each passing second. 

No one moves to stop him. They simply watch him leave, with feet planted firmly and jaws hanging loose. There's an echoing boom as Tsuna disappears from their sight.

* * *

Chiyo has seen a lot throughout her long and illustrious life. Through her work as a hero and a school nurse, she has witnessed strange and wonderful things, tragic and frightening things, awful and confusing things. But today has been especially... special in a way.

When Sawada Tsunayoshi was brought into the clinic, barely breathing and cold to the touch, Chiyo felt vindicated, to be terribly honest. She had argued against keeping him away from proper medical attention. But no. Their guests refused to listen. Now their friend is in mortal peril.

Of course, she didn't stay smug too long. She had work to do. First, she got some heat packs to bring Sawada's temperature up. Somehow, this failed, completely circumventing the basic laws of thermodynamics. Then Sawada's heart rate dropped. She was forced to focus on rescucitating him, starting the CPR process. Naturally, that's when their guests barged in.

Well, she already had a few of them hanging around. They accompanied Iida when he dropped off Sawada and then they simply never left. With a patient requiring urgent attention, Chiyo let them be. They weren't causing a fuss, just watching her intently. 

Still, she got the feeling that they were indulging her somehow, like she was just putting on a show and they were waiting for real help to come. And well, she did need real help - hospital help, maybe a defibrillator. Nothing was working on Sawada. His pulse just got slower, his temperature continued to fall - it didn't make any sense.

When the two - Yuni and Byakuran - came in, they just pushed her aside. The nerve of these teenagers! She was about to give them one hell of a lecture when that Yamamoto boy took her aside. And it got very, very hard to stay angry.

Oh, her mind was working perfectly. She could remember every reason for being mad. She simply wasn't. She would think "oh, those idiots don't know what they're doing" and "they'll kill him - they're really going to kill him" but her chest didn't tighten up, her throat didn't burn. She felt perfectly at ease despite noticing how badly they handled Sawada.

This must be Yamamoto's quirk or power or whatever. It would be effective in a crisis or hell, the teacher's lounge when there's only one box of complimentary cookies left. But at the time, it was infuriating - or it would have been if she could feel fury. She thought about stepping forward and kicking all of them out, but Yamamoto held her shoulders firmly, with the grip expected of a budding baseball star. And to begin with, it really was only a thought. She couldn't dig up the need to kick or scream or anything. She never realized how invigorating anger could be until she found herself lacking it.

They started talking about "dying will" something. That sounded ominous, to say the least. Sure, they seemed to know more about Sawada's condition. Except they didn't sound so certain themselves. And that didn't boost her faith in them, to say the least. No. Chiyo outright believed that they were all absolutely crazy. Yuuei had let a bunch of lunatics run around their campus. It was nothing short of miraculous that there's been zero incidents, save for the present one. Oh heaven help the school if the press hears about this.

When she managed to get a word in edgewise, she really put an edge to her voice. It took a lot to rebel against Yamamoto's influence. But she was going to be heard even if only once.

She didn't make any difference. Chiyo could have been a decorative house plant and they may have paid attention to her _more_. 

When things inevitably got worse, they started talking about a bullet. That got her gears really going. She couldn't afford to stand around, being offended. She had to act now. She had to try again. 

And maybe she had gotten better at fighting off Yamamoto or maybe Yamamoto was too distracted by everything else - whatever the cause, she managed to pull away from his hold. Once free, fury returned to her with the speed of a summer storm. But by then, everything was already in motion. She wanted them to wait and precisely explain everything. Surely they can't be thinking of a literal, actual bullet! Right?

Chiyo reached out, attempting to snag that Byakuran boy's collar. She missed. If she had only been a second faster or hell, a year younger, but no. She was old and she was slow. 

Still, she was more than that.

She was Recovery Girl. Once a hero, always a hero. She wasn't going to stand by and let them do as they please. So she took off, running through the halls, startling a few students.

Some cosmic power was on her side because she finally found a teacher and Aizawa couldn't have been more perfect. Whatever their guests had planned, he would be able to stop them. She was certain of it.

She ended up being very, very wrong. Oh, they found the group easily enough. They were outside, in a small space between two buildings, right under her clinic's window. It wasn't the most secluded area but no students were nearby. So at least, they wouldn't have to worry about crowd control. But that was the only good thing to speak of.

Everything else was a mess, starting with the bang that greeted them. They had arrived just in time to witness the eldest - the Sasagawa boy - fire a gun. 

And where? What? _How_ did he hide that thing? Their belongings had been searched both officially with permission and unofficially without permission. And it's been nearly 13 days since they arrived - _Thirteen_ days of near constant supervision. None of them noticed their strange and worrisome guest carrying a firearm?? This couldn't be possible!

But it was. And they watched as Sasagawa shot his friend between the eyes. Chiyo felt her knees give. She would have dropped to the floor if Aizawa hadn't caught her. It really looked like their guests just murdered one of their own. She had stopped thinking beyond that. 

For an agonizing length of time - maybe a minute or maybe an hour, she could only gape at the sight before her. Sawada was limp in that Byakuran boy's arms. Sasagawa kept the gun raised, as if preparing another shot. Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Yuni stood nearby, wearing the strangest expressions.

Well… Chiyo had thought "strangest". But truthfully, she knew exactly what she was seeing. She simply didn't understand why she was seeing it. Faces filled with hope didn't fit Sawada's senseless execution, especially when they had been trying so hard to revive him.

But then…

Then Sawada exploded back into life, and… Nothing made sense. Everything continued to make no sense. And Chiyo started to fervently hope that this was all a crazy fever dream. There was fire and fury and flying - honest to goodness flight! Sawada had launched up from the ground and sailed through the air. He even broke the sound barrier on his way out.

All in all, it was something unbelievable, even for someone like herself. Those decades of heroism, followed by years of service in Yuuei, had not prepared her for this. Now, she can only stare at the teenagers left behind. She couldn't think. She couldn't speak. She even doubts her ability to breathe. A monsoon of emotions howls within her and yet, she simply stands there, blinking at them.

"What." Aizawa's voice cuts through the ringing silence. And thank the heavens for him! At least one of them is somewhat coherent!

The group finally takes notice of their presence. They look over, expressions ranging from blank to outright uninterested. Seeing that, something in Chiyo snaps. 

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" She hollers at them. "Did you just shoot Sawada?? What happened to him?!?"

"And where did he go?" Aizawa adds. 

Chiyo glances over and finds him glaring at their guests, his eyes narrowed thinner than a surgical needle. 

"Not far, surely." Yuni nods, frowning for once. She usually wears those polite smiles with carefully-trimmed cheer. This must be the first honest expression that Chiyo has seen her wear. "He's still recovering. His Flame won't carry him far. I can fetch him."

" _We_ can fetch him," Byakuran chimes in. His grin reminds Chiyo of a kitsune, a trickster spirit at play. He ropes an arm around Yuni and draws her close. "We better get going now before Tsu-kun runs off too far!"

"Why _you_?" Gokudera spits out, with enough venom to make a cobra envious. "We're his guardians! We-"

"-are more vulnerable to his fluctuating Flame. Thank you oh so much for pointing that out. Well, toodles!"

Aizawa's capturing weapon snakes around Byakuran's ankle. The boy raises an eyebrow, his eyes opening wider than usual. He gifts Aizawa with a condescending look, something more fit for a half-dead roach than an esteemed Yuuei teacher. 

"Excuse me?"

"No, you are not excused. Until we have our answers, none of you are leaving."

Now Byakuran's eyes are fully open. He frowns. Again, this is the first honest expression that Chiyo has seen from him. These teenagers are finally showing their true colors.

"So what? You're just gonna let some punch-drunk, half-dead teenager zoom off to who knows where? None of you can fly! And he needs urgent care! Emphasis on urgent!"

"Byakuran is right. Tsuna-kun needs care now. Please let us go."

"How convenient that things are always so urgent and dire for you." Chiyo crosses her arms. "Always twisting our arms, forcing us to play by your rules! If you had let us help, things would never have reached to such an extreme degree!"

"Except you extremely can't help!" Sasagawa answers. 

"How do we know that for sure?" Chiyo barks back. "You won't let us try!"

Yamamoto sighs. It's the only warning they get. Between one heartbeat and the next, the boy manages to appear beside Byakuran and releases him from the capturing weapon. His hands glow blue, coated with a strange, liquid-looking flame.

"Find Tsuna," Yamamoto tells Byakuran.

"Sir, yessir!" Byakuran pulls Yuni closer as he spreads his wings wide, taking off.

Chiyo hears a loud yawn. She turns and sees Aizawa swaying from side to side, trying hard to stay standing. Wrinkling her brow, she reaches out to steady him but he staggers away, shaking his head. He yanks back his capturing weapon - now wreathed with the same glow from Yamamoto's hands. 

There's a sheepish sort of chuckle. She returns her attention to their guests. Yamamoto has his hands raised defensively, no longer glowing blue.

"Is that your quirk?" Aizawa asks, slurring slightly. "A sedative?"

"It's not a quirk. Didn't Byakuran and Yuni tell you about it?" Gokudera mutters, pulling out a cigarette.

"They mentioned it briefly, something about weather patterns. But they didn't give us specifics." Aizawa presses on, sounding more awake. "From what you've demonstrated however, it acts like a tranquilizer - for both people and quirks alike. Am I right?"

"It is very versatile." Yamamoto nods. "I didn't want to use it. I mean, you aren't our enemies, or anything. It's just… With Tsuna like that… Byakuran and Yuni had to go. But hey, listen. We answer all your questions here and now. Fair trade?"

"Tch. You baseball idiot."

Yamamoto shares a look with Gokudera. Something unspoken passes between them before Yamamoto faces Chiyo and Aizawa once more.

"You will answer everything?" She asks. "How do we know that you aren't lying?"

"You don't. But we haven't harmed any student since our arrival. Sure, a couple flashing lights here and some melodrama there. And that's all."

Chiyo purses her lips. Aizawa's heavy gaze sears a spot on the back of her head. It's her call.

"Alright then." She stands up straight, lifting her chin. She was never a tall woman but she will make every centimetre count. "First question. _What_ was that?!"

"A family tradition," Gokudera replies with a click of his tongue.

"Enough of your sass!" Chiyo does not stomp her foot because she is full grown and not a child throwing a tantrum. But oh hell, she wants to. "You promised to answer honestly!"

"And I'm being serious! That's how the Tenth's family activates their power!"

"By getting shot?!"

"By dying. Well, specifically from a special bullet. So yeah. I guess by getting shot, if you want to erase all nuance from it."

Aizawa lets out a muffled groan. "This is going to take awhile, isn't it?"

Yamamoto chuckles again. "Don't you have a class to teach?"

Aizawa glares at him, hard enough to pin down anyone even without Erasure active. Unfortunately, Yamamoto is not just anyone and he continues to cheerfully grin back. Chiyo massages her temples.

"We need to loop in Nedzu anyways," she mutters. "Let's escort them to his office and you can return to your students."

Aizawa nods, opening his mouth to speak. Then he shuts it with a teeth-aching click. His brow tugs down into a pointed V as his eyes flick from side to side.

"Hold on. Wasn't that Hibari boy here? Where did he go?"

* * *

Byakuran lands in an empty park, not too far from where they first entered the world. He pushes Yuni away from him, startling her. She stumbles for a few steps before regaining her balance and whipping around to face him.

"Why are we here? We're supposed to be looking for Tsu-"

"And that's enough of that," Byakuran cuts in, with a tone sharper than any swordsman's blade.

Yuni never flinches. No, she trained herself to dig her heels in and pull back her shoulders whenever she gets scared. By now, he knows her tells, just like she knows his. Yuni must note the way his eyes are fully open, the gnarled knot of his frown. If the stakes were any lower, he'd paste on his usual half-smile with his eyes curved shut. But the stakes are very high, very high indeed.

"So. Are you going to finally explain?"

"What would I need to explain?"

"Do you take me to be a fool? I saw clear as day." Byakuran moves in closer, towering over her. "Yuni. He fled from you. What is going on?"

He expected her to raise her head and meet his gaze. But a second passes then two then twenty, and she doesn't. She stares straight ahead, not at him, not at anything, but at some nebulous point in the distance. Her shoulders pull in, back bending forward, one hand lifting up to clutch her chest. No, not her chest - Her hand fists where the Arcobaleno pacifier used to hang. 

"... Whatever happens next, just know that I did it for all of us."

An orange glow begins to spill through her fingers. Byakuran's breath sticks in his throat.

"What have you done?"

A breeze picks up, rustling the trees around them. He feels a tug somewhere in the very core of his being, right where his Flames live. He's only ever felt this once before, when Tsuna had disappeared.

There's a high-pitched _vmmmm_ noise. Byakuran watches a tear appear in mid-air. It's like the whole world became nothing more than a cheap cloth backdrop in a public school play. And something is slashing its way through. 

The tear widens, spilling out fuzzy particles like white noise made real and tangible. Within, there's nothing but a yawning black abyss, empty - until it wasn't. A wingtipped shoe steps out, followed by a tailored pant leg, all the way to a expertly cut suit jacket. Unfortunately, the badly trimmed goatee ruins the whole look. But the smile makes up for it, charming enough to seduce the skin off a grape.

Iemitsu Sawada beams at them, wielding cheer like a blunt force weapon. 

"Thank you kindly, Lady Giglio Nero," he says, nodding at Yuni. "I'm terribly sorry for all the trouble my little Tuna-fishie caused you. But don't you fret none! We'll set him right as rain."

Byakuran swallows, attempting to wet his throat. But his mouth is dryer than the Sahara desert. 

"We?" He manages to cough out.

Iemitsu turns to Byakuran, his attention more heated than a thousand spotlights all pointed at him. His Flame is nothing and everything like Tsuna's. There's the same current of power but it's no longer raw, no longer wild. Iemitsu's Flame is a trained beast, honed to needlepoint perfection.

"Why, of course! It's about time for a Vongola family reunion, don't you say?"

Iemitsu steps further into the world, and behind him, the tear widens as more people step through. The whole of CEDEF, the Varia, and even Vongola Nono's guardians fill the once empty park. Vongola Nono, himself, didn't appear but Byakuran can't find it in him to be thankful because the old fox sent in a suitable representative.

Reborn's beetle-black eyes land on Byakuran. He tips his beloved fedora. "Chaos, Gesso."

**Author's Note:**

> I only read BNHA fanfics lol. I have never read the actual BNHA manga so apologies for inconsistencies in characterization.
> 
> Honestly, I wanted Tsuna to hang out with the 1-A students more. But I couldn't figure out how to work them in. I really wanted Tsuna to be more blatantly enamored by the BNHA world. But his conflict with Yuni took center stage instead.
> 
> This whole piece is pretty much a self indulgent set up of the problem that needs to be addressed. If I ever decide to write a part 2, the BNHA side will definitely play a bigger role because it's hero time baby. 
> 
> (And if I do decide to write a 2nd part, I would really like a co-writer or editor to help me along)
> 
> Also, this fic took a literal year of sporadic writing. So the writing itself isn't very consistent either. Lol


End file.
